Spanish Sahara
by MythicWolf04
Summary: At the end of the world, a man isn't faced with many choices. For Wolf, it was simple: escape with Star Fox, the people who demonized him most, or die on Corneria to an unknown threat. He chose the most obvious answer, of course.
1. Breaking Down

Entombed in fear, I watch

As it all crashes and dies

There is no hope

Only darkness

* * *

Wolf knew he was making a huge mistake as soon as he crossed the threshold of the Great Fox, but what choice did he have? It was either go with the people who hated him and wished for his eternal damnation, or stay on Corneria City and die out there fighting: or worse.

Fox gave him a choice in a desperate moment, and Wolf chose to go with his only chance of salvation. He had clambered up the landing ramp numbly as crowds of other citizens did the same, albeit a little more panicked than he, while that bird- Falco, he remembered- stood guard and Fox ushered everyone in, his eyes darting around the place, worry darkening his features.

Wolf wasn't sure what to think at that moment; he'd been separated from his team and nearly died in the last hour alone, and for the first time in recent memory, he was truly terrified.

When he entered the spacious hangar, he turned around to stare at the burning Cornerian skyline, high rises collapsing into ash and rubble as they fell and the world crumbled and civilization died. Wolf dropped his gun and looked on hopelessly at the red horizon, realizing they were doomed to fail.

He couldn't recall much after that mind-rending thought, but he vaguely remembered the vixen, Krystal, gently leading him past a very full hangar of Cornerian citizens to the infirmary, where she gave him a shock blanket and pat on the shoulder, whispering soothing words he didn't register. He had curled up on one of the beds in the infirmary, and watched injured people filter in and out while the toad took care of all of them as he shivered alone and unnoticed in that fuzzy blanket.

Wolf wasn't sure how long he laid there, but it was long enough for him to feel the Great Fox take off and see the toad almost pass out from exhaustion. He might have laughed if he even had the energy to do so. He could hear muffled sobbing from one corner of the room, and he truly felt remorse for whoever that was. It wasn't every day that the center of civilization in the Lylat System was destroyed, after all. He would've laughed at the thought, but he didn't have the energy.

Eventually, he got up from his bed when he realized someone else would need it more than him, and he clutched his blanket as he exited the infirmary, the toad barely giving him a glance as he left. They must be just as scared as Wolf if they weren't even going to try to hate him.

Wolf wasn't surprised to see the halls filled with refugees clinging to each other as if even the lightest gust of wind could possibly tear them apart. Nobody cared about the big bad wolf trudging through the ship with a too-small blanket covering his large frame.

He hoped his team was okay, and that they'd somehow survived whatever happened. They tried to stay together when it all went to hell, but it was a lost cause, and Wolf lost them both. He wasn't even sure what had happened himself, but he remembered thousands of stampeding Cornerians and military fighters headed into the central part of the city. There were flashes of… things that he couldn't quite remember, so he reasoned he must've hit his head while everyone fled.

Wolf somehow stumbled upon a lift, and upon careful consideration, pressed the button which would take him to the top floor. Just before it had closed, a dog in a military uniform and a pink feline crowded in with him, and they both looked as scared and tired as he did.

"Friends of Fox?" Wolf questioned, looking down at both of them on either side of him. They nodded solemnly, meeting his gaze.

"You're Wolf O'Donnell," the pink one remarked as she looked down at her nails, voice shaky. "Not that it matters, though. We've all got the same problem to face."

Wolf was glad to see nobody felt like treating him as the monster he was, at least for the moment. "Do you two know what's going on right now?" He asked, this time looking at the dog for answers. The grey hound shook his head.

"Dude, nobody told me anything, except to head to the center of the city to take care of 'the situation.' I saw all of the people trying to get away, and not one soldier was helping them get away, so I went AWOL to help. I'm sorry I can't give more info, man," the dog stated with a shrug, taking his battered green helmet off.

"Who are you two?" Wolf continued with a raised eyebrow, too exhausted to ask more about their accounts of the incident.

"Katt Monroe," the cat stated, reaching her hand out for Wolf to shake, which he took, surprised to see how strong of a grip she had for having such small hands.

"Bill Grey, Cornerian Army officer, dude," the dog murmured with a single nod, catching Wolf off guard with how calm he was. He knew he wasn't off his rocker because the shock from earlier was still set in his system, but this Bill person seemed completely fine, strangely enough.

The lift arrived at the top floor and deposited the trio into a bridge filled with a group of tired souls huddled around a table in the center of the area with a holographic projection of Corneria shown in the middle of it. They'd apparently already broken through the atmosphere and left the planet, as evidenced by the sea of dim stars outside the windows wrapping around the room. Wolf saw Krystal, Falco, Peppy, and Fox all swivel their heads to look at them with mixtures of shock, joy, and relief on their faces. Wolf realized it was probably all directed at the two who had arrived with him.

Wolf admitted he breathed a sigh of relief to see Fox's team safe and sound, but he knew they didn't feel the same. He moved out of the way as the others embraced tightly, laughing or crying. Well… everybody except Krystal. He gravitated towards her where she stood by the table, and she smiled softly at seeing him.

"Nice to see them reunite," Wolf murmured, to which she nodded in agreement. He sighed as he held his blanket around himself.

"Of course, but I'm sure Fox appreciates that you are also here," Krystal replied with a friendly smile, to which the lupine snorted in disbelief.

"I know you all hate me, and you're only being so nice because the end of the world just started, so you can drop the pleasantries," he shot back a little too fiercely, his ears drooping in hurt and loneliness. He was an outcast among outcasts.

Krystal opened her mouth to disagree, but she shut it when the others finally walked back over to the table and huddled around it, staring up at that hologram with expressions of confusion, fear, and calculation running across their faces.

"Wolf," Fox greeted, surprising the lupine that he actually acknowledged his presence. Wolf nodded at him in return, probably looking a little hysterical with the blanket draped over him.

"What's going on?" He asked, hoping someone would have the answers he was looking for. Unfortunately, Fox merely shrugged, his eyes darkening significantly.

"I… I'm not sure, none of us are. First it was a simple Cornerian day, and then citizens started running away and buildings caught fire, and. Military went to check on the situation, and I haven't heard a single word from Pepper all week," he explained, running a hand through the fur on the top of his head. The hologram of the city flickered uselessly in the air, nobody knowing what to do with it.

It wasn't much more than Wolf knew, which was annoying. He guaranteed if he hadn't hit his head, he would know more than all of them combined. He groaned, feeling it start to erupt in pain. The day really had been awful, hadn't it?

Bill cleared his throat to speak, and Fox gestured towards him. "Higher ups wouldn't tell me anything except that we weren't supposed to evacuate anyone, so I jumped ship. I don't know anything else, dudes," he reported sadly, hanging his head.

Katt looked over at him with a frown, setting a hand on his arm. "We came here together after trying to figure out what was starting the panic. There wasn't a lot to go off of, but I could hear some nasty explosions coming from downtown. Maybe that old hound is trying to hide something?" She suggested, crossing her arms as she looked at Fox.

He placed a hand on his forehead, and Peppy rubbed his shoulder comfortingly. "We don't have nearly enough pieces of this puzzle to start pointing fingers," the hare remarked. "We just have to put some faith in each other and start solving this."

Wolf snorted, ears lowering. "Then I shouldn't even be here if you're so concerned about that," he spat out, hurt and anger stinging his chest. Even faced with a common threat, he knew these people would throw him to the flame without a second glance.

Krystal shook her head roughly just as Fox- of all people, him- made a noise of protest. "Nobody here wants you to leave, not with you so… so…" he trailed off, weak excuse for a persuasion faltering even more.

Wolf raised an eyebrow, his natural defense of self hatred kicking in. He dug his hands into his blanket and growled. "The word you're looking for is weak, isn't it? You don't trust me, you can just say it," he shot back, eye narrowed. He had forgotten that his eyepatch had fallen off sometime when he was running away on the ground, revealing the scarred flesh for all the world to gawk at.

Fox merely sighed, his ears pinning to the back of his head. "Do what you want, Wolf. There's no point in arguing about this anymore," he murmured, dropping the subject for once instead of trying to retaliate further.

Falco shot Wolf a glare after his outburst, and he scowled, too tired to provoke the bird into a fight, which would've been all too easy given their exhaustion and temper. Instead, he glanced at Krystal, who looked genuinely concerned for him. He knew she was probably looking into his head, and very pointedly thought about how rude it would be for someone to try that, and she looked away right after, refocusing on Fox. So even she thought he wasn't trustworthy. Wolf groaned, his head pounding like a drum.

"Wolf, are you feeling alright? You look worse than the rest of us," Fox remarked worriedly, starting to edge towards him. He growled, backing off from the other canine as his headache grew worse.

"Leave me alone! You're just trying to get rid of me!" He shouted hysterically, trying to get the others away from him. His hearing was starting to fade and his vision becoming hazy as the others surrounded him.

"Go get Slippy, Wolf's in trouble!" He vaguely heard Krystal shout to someone. He tried to swipe at whoever was grabbing his arm, but he was just too tired to keep trying. He gradually fell into unconsciousness, a sinking feeling creeping into his stomach.

All he could see was fire. It was burning away everything in sight including the buildings, ground, and even the sky itself. He was terrified, and he desperately wished for someone to help him out of his nightmare.

Shadowy figures were creeping towards him through the never-ending flames, making strange choked sounds as they danced around him, reaching their arms out as if to grab him and take him away.

Wolf screamed for help, for anyone to heed his call and drag him away to safety where he could curl up and pretend nothing existed anymore. Those beings edged closer to him, and he could start to make out their eyes, shaped oddly like the eyes of a person, except they were bloodshot and the sclera was a sickly yellow color.

Wolf reached inside his leather duster for a gun, but he found nothing inside but a few playing cards and some spare change. He knew then that he was helpless and completely at the mercy of these things trying to kill him.

He actually sobbed in anguish, reaching a hand into the burning orange and white sky before the creatures pounced on him. There still was no answer to his cry, and Wolf closed his eye in defeat, accepting his inevitable fate.

Before his limbs were torn off, it all went silent, and Wolf reopened his eye, finding himself face to face with Fox, who wore a small grin on his face.

But before he could say anything, it all went black again.

Wolf shot up with a shout, his surroundings quickly coming back into focus as his adrenaline kicked in. He found that he was back in the infirmary, IV tubes stuck up his left wrist and some weird patches on his head. He noticed that the entire Star Fox team was standing around his bed, fearful and concerned looks on their faces. Wolf reached for the shock blanket, and Fox wordlessly handed it to him.

"You're- you're awake," he mumbled numbly, making Wolf raise his brow. His head felt a lot clearer than it had before he'd passed out and had that strange dream.

"What the hell happened to me?" Wolf asked nobody in particular, looking at everyone's too-close faces.

The toad seemingly appeared out of nowhere from behind the others, some kind of tablet in his hand. "When you fell unconscious, we brought you here and I scanned your brainwaves and took blood to figure out what was going on. It seemed that a heavy amount of PCP had entered your bloodstream and caused your paranoia and aggression. You just about died from overdose, but I was able to save you" he explained, Wolf barely keeping up as he spoke.

His eyes widened, and he pulled the pads stuck to his head off as well as his IV, clutching his stupid little blanket closer to his chest. "Then how did you get it out? Why didn't I die from it, like a drug overdose?" He asked fearfully.

"I flushed the majority of it from your system and let the rest run its course. You're completely free of the PCP, but the question is how so much got in your bloodstream. Is there anything you… took before boarding the ship with us?" The toad questioned hesitantly, turning his tablet off to get Wolf's full attention.

Wolf sighed, resting a hand on his forehead. "I'd know if I took drugs, but there's a point from earlier in the day that I can't remember. I think I hit my head pretty hard then," he murmured, head throbbing as he tried to think of what happened earlier in the day.

He remembered hearing the explosions, and he saw the people running away… and then he was knocked down. Wolf had a blank spot in his memory after that, with hazy figures clouding his mind, and then the next thing he knew he had been running towards the Great Fox.

"Can you tell us what you do remember about earlier?" Krystal asked, snapping him out of his thoughts when she rested a hand on his shoulder.

Wolf then proceeded to relay all he could to the group around him, his ears drooping as he did so. That odd little hiccup in his memory was annoying him to no end, because he knew something important had happened there, most likely the reason he'd had so much PCP in his system.

After he had finished, Bill hummed to himself. "I'll bet that whatever caused that chaos in the city was also what put those drugs in your body, dude. Not sure about the memory loss, but this all just feels too strange to be a coincidence," he stated wisely while scratching his chin.

"If only we had more clues about this whole situation!" Fox exclaimed, whining in frustration as he kicked at the ground.

Wolf looked down at his feet, hugging his knees to his chest. Nothing felt right anymore, and he wasn't sure what to do about it. "I'm sorry about earlier," he whispered, scratching at the scarred flesh on his eye, guilt racking through his body.

Krystal sighed, sitting next to him on the bed. "Wolf, you can't blame yourself for actions that weren't under your control. Just let it go; you didn't hurt anyone during that outburst, and now you're healthy again," she said comfortingly, laying a hand on his shoulder.

"We have a job to do now," Fox stated, nearly interrupting Krystal in the process.

"And what would that be?" Wolf pondered, his shoulders relaxing a bit from the vixen's comforting words. He got up from the bed, finally glad to be looking back down at everyone instead of the other way around. He stretched his limbs as he looked over everyone for his answer.

Peppy cleared his throat to speak. "First, we're going to drop all of these people off on Katina, at the capital city. I've made arrangements with the Katina Defense Force, and their military will take care of the citizens. Then we're going back to Corneria to figure this out," he explained quickly. Wolf imagined they all had jobs to take care of before then, so he simply nodded.

"Now if you don't need me anymore, I'm going to go and take a walk," Wolf replied as he walked towards the infirmary exit.

Nobody tried to keep him from leaving, so he continued, the door silently sliding open for him as he came out into a blank metal hallway filled with some Cornerians huddled together. A few stared at him incredulously, but Wolf doubted he looked very intimidating while he dragged a dumb blanket around.

Wolf chose a direction and stomped off in it, guilt and uncertainty plaguing his mind like a tumor all the while. He had just been dragged into a conflict he knew next to nothing about, standing with who he thought were the people who hated him most, and they just willingly saved his life. He wasn't sure what to think anymore, but he certainly knew his old life, his start of redemption and his descent into anonymity was just ripped away from him and torn into shreds, and he wanted it back.

Wolf was vaguely aware of someone following him down the corridors, but he paid them no mind, stopping in front of an elevator and pressing a button.

Krystal was the one to stand next to him as they waited for the elevator doors to open, wringing her hands as she glanced between Wolf, the door, and the metal ground. He snorted, picking his nails as he waited; as far as he was concerned, he didn't need to talk to anyone in the ship.

Apparently, she had other ideas. "You know, we aren't out to kill you. That's just senseless violence," she remarked as the doors opened. They both walked into the lift, and Wolf hit the button for the hangar, which was on the lowest deck.

"That's just because we share a common enemy," he murmured under his breath.

Krystal chose not to respond, the two staying silent for the rest of the ride. Wolf was grateful that she wasn't being hostile to him, and was trying to encourage him nobody else was a threat, but he knew they weren't treating him like a monster because they had to work together. The second this all ended, Fox would go right back to hating his guts.

The doors opened, and Wolf walked out into the hangar. It was a spacious place, if not a little more empty than anything else. The space consisted of four docks for the Arwings elevated above a flat metal floor with workspaces and ship parts scattered about the place. Catwalks led up to the Arwings which were pointed to the hangar door that was closed at the moment.

Wolf was surprised at the messiness of the place, having considered Star Fox to be organized and millitaristic. It reminded him of Sargasso in a sense, he mused. He walked over to a discarded ship wing near the hangar door, and sat on it with a sigh. The wing didn't look like it fit on an Arwing, he noted offhandedly as he watched Krystal walk to her own Arwing and climb into it.

Wolf was seriously considering just ditching the team when they landed on Katina. He certainly wasn't an asset, and staying would most likely start a conflict, but at the same time… he needed answers. Wolf needed to know what that bioweapon was and if it did anything terrible to him, and he needed to know where his team was.

He still had his reservations, however. Wolf wasn't so sure it would be a good idea to rush straight to Corneria recklessly without more information, and he certainly didn't want to meet whatever injected that PCP into his bloodstream. He huffed softly to himself, deciding to think more on it later.

Taking a closer look at the wing he was seated on in a fit of boredom, he noticed it looked oddly similar to the wing of a Wolfen. Wolf saw the scorch marks and scratches scattered about the wing, and he hummed, wondering if it was from one of his old fighters. He resolved to ask the question later, and got back up, leaving the blanket as he did so.

Wolf needed to have a talk with Fox.


	2. Deathwish

Darkness covers the land

It swallows all

Nothing can be saved

There is no exception

* * *

Wolf was not happy, to say the least about his situation.

He entered the bridge, scanning the area for signs of an orange vulpine, but unfortunately he only saw Peppy, who was busy seated at the central table where he stared at a laptop in front of him. The hare must not have heard him approach over the drone of his fingers tapping on the keys, for he jumped when Wolf set his hand on the table.

"Where's Fox?" He asked, looking at Peppy. They needed to have a talk. Wolf needed to figure out Fox's thought process as to why he wasn't eager to throw him out with the rest of the refugees on Katina when they landed in a few hours.

Peppy recovered from his start and cleared his throat, looking up at him. "He should be in his room," he stated.

"Where's that?" Wolf questioned, cocking his head. It was rather odd Peppy was being indifferent to him, but he wasn't going to question it.

"Top deck, second room on your left after the elevator," he answered after a moment of thought.

Wolf nodded, turning to walk back towards the elevator.

"Oh, and be sure to tell him we'll be arriving at Katina soon!" Peppy called as he walked out, and Wolf gave him a thumbs up, not bothering to turn back.

He entered the lift and pressed the button for the top deck, resting his head on the cool metal of the wall and closing his eye. Nightmares and flashes of dark and shadowy figures flitted through his mind, and he whimpered softly. His breath and heartbeat quickened as he tried to clear his mind of the nightmare that was his reality.

The lift deposited him on the top deck, and he followed Peppy's directions until he ended up in front of a blank metal door, where a nameplate hung next to the door frame with Fox's name on it.

Wolf stared at the door, apprehension pooling in his gut as his hand hovered in front of it. He wasn't sure what he was going to say about what their plans for the future were, but his best case scenario was Fox simply shouting at him to get out of his room.

Well, there was no point in standing in front of the door like an idiot. He rapped on the door and crossed his arms as he waited.

"Come in!" A muffled voice exclaimed a moment later, and Wolf entered the room quietly, taking a quick moment to check his surroundings.

Fox's room was rather small, the walls a monochrome and unpainted grey color with a few star charts hung about haphazardly, the biggest one on the ceiling. A messy pile of clothing lay in one corner next to a desk, and an antiquated oak closet stood up next to the queen-sized bed. Fox was sprawled out on it, his jacket thrown behind him as he looked down at a laptop. There was only one exit, unfortunately. Wolf wrinkled his nose; it smelled awful in his room, like a Sargasso locker room that hadn't been cleaned in a long while.

Fox glanced up at Wolf before closing his laptop and sitting up. "Hey," Fox murmured, scratching the back of his neck as he glanced around his room. Wolf crossed his arms, leaning against the door frame.

"We need to talk," Wolf stated, his eye narrowed and ears erect. Fox looked up at him, head cocked and eyebrow raised.

"What about?" He questioned, moving to sit on the edge of the bed, feet barely touching the carpeted floor.

Wolf moved a little further into the room, standing across from Fox with his hands on his hips. "Why the hell am I still on your ship, McCloud?" He asked, frown forming on his face. Fox's eyebrow was still raised, motioning his hands for Wolf to continue.

Wolf huffed. "Don't play dumb. We're rivals, I'm on your ship without conflict, and that's not how it works. You're just going to dump me on Katina when we get there," he snapped, jowls curled downward in a snarl as he jabbed a finger in Fox's direction.

The action made him wince, Wolf noted with a small amount of pride. "Wolf, I'm not just going to abandon you when we get there." Fox sighed, cradling his chin. "If we want to stop this madness, we need all the help we can get. I'm willing to team up with you and I know you're capable of honor."

Wolf scoffed, rolling his eye. "Bullshit. You're just using me because I encountered that thing on Corneria, you don't care about me!" He shouted, tail tucked behind him.

"I don't-" Fox started, but he cut himself off, rubbing his temples furiously. "I just want us to help each other like we used to a year ago. We're doing no good fighting like this," he pointed out, wringing his hands.

Admittedly, Fox's words made some sense; they had a bigger threat to worry about. Yet Wolf still didn't trust him or his team.

"Fine, I'll play it your way and we'll see how far it gets us," Wolf shot back, jaw clenched and hands balled in fists. He turned around and shoved his hands in his coat pockets as he stalked out of the small room.

"Be a jackass about it, see if I care!" Fox shouted after him. He turned to snap something back at him, but the door already closed.

Words couldn't express how pissed off Wolf was at Fox, so he simply gritted his teeth and swallowed any words he wanted to scream at the ceiling. He snorted to himself, looking down at the floor.

He really needed to take a nap and cool off.

Wolf saw that the room opposite to Fox's had no nameplate on it, and he entered that one, finding the room to he completely devoid of everything but the sparsely furnished bed and a blank desk. He dropped on the bed, his eyelids feeling heavy. Despite spending a good amount of time upon the Great Fox unconscious, he still felt completely drained.

Wolf closed his eyes, crawling up to rest his head on one of the hard pillows. Those frightful images from before still haunted his psyche, and he tossed and turned for what felt like hours, terror coursing through his mind.

Eventually he found sleep, and what he hoped was a temporary respite from his reality.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

Wolf was standing upon the edge of a great skyscraper overlooking a vast flatland of brown tallgrass and scrubs. He looked up and saw a deep orange sky, cloudless and untouched, and his eye widened.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

The plains extended endlessly, fading and mixing into the orange horizon, leaving a minimalist landscape of nothing but grass. There was little else but Wolf and the skyscraper amongst a sea of barren wasteland.

He was alone.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

Wolf found himself mesmerized by his surroundings, unable to tear his gaze from the nothingness. He sat on the edge, his legs dangling over an impossibly tall dropoff, and he folded his arms together. For an unknown reason, he had a feeling he was somewhere out of time and space itself, and that was a humbling thought. He was at the mercy of whatever had sent him here.

He could've been sitting there for minutes or hours, he couldn't tell anymore, but he knew he was waiting for something incredible to happen.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

Without warning, clouds began to darken the orange sky and they brought with them the smell of rain and the charge of electricity in the air. The clouds covered every inch of the sky except what was directly above the skyscraper, and it started to storm. An entire sea must have dropped down onto the plain, for it was flooding the entire area.

Wolf got up and backed away from the edge, terror constricting his lungs and making it hard to breathe. He was going to drown by himself on top of a lonely skyscraper.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

He scrambled away from the edge, only to slam his back into something hard. A stench of burning flesh was prevalent in the air and he felt something warm and wet seep into his fur and skin. Wolf slowly turned around, ears pinned to the back of his head, and came face to face with the burning and bloody body of Panther Caroso himself, his arms reaching out in a silent plea of help and his eyes bloodshot and unblinking.

Wolf tried to reach for him, but Panther was thrown backwards off of the building by some unseen force, landing in the sea that was now lapping at the edge of his steel island.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

He tried to scream and reach for his fallen comrade, but he couldn't move. Wolf was forced to stare down at the unblinking face of Panther as he sunk to the bottom of the sea, and he wanted it to stop. He wanted to save his friend, but it was too late.

Wolf was always too late.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

Wolf shot up out of bed with a gasp, and he glanced around wildly, finding himself back in the room on the Great Fox. He stared down at his hands, and all he could see were the stained and bloody hands of Panther. His throat felt tight and he started to hyperventilate, mindless terror consuming his soul. He tried shutting his eyes, but all he could see was Panther's lifeless face.

Wolf had failed to save him.

He hugged his knees to his chest, trying to focus and steady his breathing so he wouldn't descend into a full blown panic attack. He focused on the wall across from him, and instead of being spotless and smooth, he noticed it was warped and twisted. Wolf bit his lip until he drew blood, his heart rate steadying and breaths slowing down.

And with the calm came the tears.

Wolf tried to stop the waterworks, he really did, but it proved useless and broke down into sobs, hiding his face in his hands as the tears fell from his eye and matted his fur down. He was so utterly and hopelessly alone in the room with walls casting distorted and incomplete reflections of a wounded lupine all around him. He curled in tightly on himself, laying back in the tangled sheets of the simple bed and buried his tear-streaked face in a pillow.

"Why can't they be here with me?" Wolf whispered to himself, reaching his hand out for something that wasn't tangible enough to grasp onto.

With a weak sniffle, he finally got out of the bed and stood up, stretching his arms up over his head without much effort. Wiping the last few tears from his snout, Wolf left the room and turned down the hallway to the elevator. He hoped they had arrived at Katina to drop the civilians off.

Wolf pushed the button, and the door opened a few seconds later. He entered the small space and the door slid shut, leaving him alone with nothing but his thoughts. The lupine sighed, rubbing his eye. That dream… it sent a shiver down his spine and a chill through his soul just at the thought of it. He wasn't sure what it meant, but he knew for certain it wasn't great.

The doors reopened, depositing Wolf at the bridge once more. He noted the crew was crowded around the table again, although they were missing Krystal and Slippy. Bill managed to catch his eye, and he smiled, waving Wolf over to stand by him.

"Hey dude! Been looking for you," the dog said with a cheerful grin, hands resting on his hips.

"What do you want?" Wolf questioned, his words coming out a bit sharper than he meant. He frowned, staring down at his feet.

Fox cleared his throat. "We're orbiting Katina right now, and we need the team to escort the Cornerians to the military base," he explained, fingers drumming on the smooth surface of the table.

"We're also trying to come up with a plan on what to do after that," Peppy murmured, rubbing his chin as he looked at Wolf. It still confused him to no end why the hare was being so kind to him of all people in the system.

Wolf hummed, glancing around at the group hunched over the table. Everyone looked completely drained and exhausted, Bill even having bags under his eyes despite the cheerful grin on his face. He sighed, looking back around and making eye contact with Fox for a moment, before they both looked away.

"Anyone have some ideas?" Wolf asked, placing his hands on his hips. Everyone looked over at Katt, who cleared her throat.

"The only thing that's going to get us any answers is locating General Pepper, and the best way to do that is by returning to Corneria," she pointed out, her arms crossed.

"So what? It's not like he's going to do anything about what happened," he stated with a raised eyebrow. Katt merely sighed, leaning over the table to look Wolf in the eyes.

"This is our only option, and frankly, I'm sure Pepper would tell us why a capital city was destroyed in a matter of hours," she shot back with a glare. "He trusts this team and it's judgement, unlike you."

Shards of glass seemed to pierce through his chest after hearing that and he winced, involuntarily taking a step away from the fiery pink feline. Wolf looked guiltily at Peppy and Falco, and they didn't make eye contact with him, which hurt all the more.

Fox scowled at Katt. "Maybe if anyone here other than Krystal would give him a chance, we'd see that he could be trustworthy!" He exclaimed, his teeth bared in a growl. Wolf looked at him, mouth agape and eye widened.

Falco scoffed. "What's with the sudden change in attitude, Foxy? You used to resent him, and now you're on his side?" He accused, jabbing a feathered finger at the speechless Wolf.

"We shouldn't be on different sides! We should all be helping each other!" Fox shouted, throwing his hands into the air. Wolf shrunk back from the table, moving to stand behind Bill.

"We need to quit fighting each other and figure out what we're fighting against," Peppy remarked with a harsh glare, standing between Falco and Fox, arms extended on both sides.

"R- right. Sorry Peppy," Falco murmured, scratching the back of his neck. He threw an apologetic look at Fox, and pointedly ignored Wolf's curious gaze, which was upsetting to say the least.

Fox sighed, scratching his ears. "As much as I hate to admit it, Katt's right. We need to go back after we refuel on Katina," he stated, crossing his arms. Wolf deflated further, and Bill set a hand on his shoulder as he frowned.

Wolf shrugged the hand off and backed away from the table, turning around when nobody was looking, everyone debating on what the plan of attack would be. He left the bridge, shouldering past Krystal at the doorway.

"Wolf?" She asked, but he growled, stepping into the lift. She frowned at him as the door closed, but he merely looked away.

He wished Fox would just drop him on Katina and be done with it.


	3. Graffiti

There is a box in a room

It needs to stay locked

Never touch it

Or you will end us all

* * *

Wolf stared down at his hands resting in his lap from where he sat on his temporary bed. He looked up to the small window on the far side of the room and saw the bright blue sky of Katina shining through his window, and squinting his eyes at the light, he got up, walking over and shutting the blinds. Sleeping seemed to be a common occurrence for him lately, much to his chagrin. He took off his leather duster and threw it on the desk, sniffing his black tank top. He couldn't smell anything other than his natural musk, so he shrugged, letting it be.

A soft knock on his door startled him. Wolf hesitated next to the bed, hand reaching for the covers, but he sighed, dropping it. "Come in," he called, sitting on the bed and facing the doorway.

It was Krystal who entered, Wolf noticed with his eyes narrowed and arms crossed. "What do you want?" He inquired.

She shrugged, not moving past the doorway. "I just want to talk with you for a few minutes," she murmured with a gentle look on her face. Wolf dropped his head, motioning for her to come in.

"About?" He questioned, glaring at her. He wasn't sure if he could trust her actions despite the comforting attitude; she was too good a friend to Fox and too loyal for him to be sure.

"I just wanted to make sure that you're alright," Krystal replied, leaning on the wall across from Wolf. Her smile was kind, but something about her eyes unnerved him. It was like they were searching for something deep within him.

"I'm fine," he stated, trying to look anywhere but her eyes. He bit his lip and flexed his hands as he tried to keep his blood from boiling.

"It sure didn't seem like you were fine, from the way you left the bridge earlier," Krystal probed further. He shifted in his seat, things starting to connect in his head.

Wolf growled, his claws biting into his palms. "You and your team don't exactly like me, but I guess you've forgotten that, haven't you? They didn't take my opinion into account, so why should I care?"

Krystal sighed, crossing her arms. "I think you're just scared. You're terrified of going back to Corneria and dealing with the fallout of what happened. You-"

"Get out," Wolf spat out, touching his forehead as his eyes widened. How could he have been so stupid?

"What?" She asked, looking down at her feet and taking a step away from him. He could feel his blood boiling.

"Get the hell out of my head! Get out of my room!" Wolf snarled, jumping from his seat. Krystal flinched, meeting his fiery gaze for a second before she looked away, starting out of the room.

"I'm sorry," she whispered as she left. Wolf scoffed at her.

"Yeah, I'm sure you are," he shot back as the door closed. He growled, falling onto the bed. He stared up at the metal ceiling, feeling violated to his core.

"Who does she think she is, trying to read everyone's thoughts without their consent?" He asked himself, grabbing a pillow and hugging it to his chest. It was just… wrong. The one place where he was supposed to feel safest to be was ripped apart, and shown bare to anyone who looked.

Wolf thumbed at a few scars that pockmarked his wrist and forearm as he stared at the ceiling. "My secrets are for me to keep."

He slowly sat back up, staring at the spot where Krystal had tried her version of interrogating him. He snorted as he set his bare feet on the chilly metal floor and got up. He swallowed, and he felt his tongue stick to his throat. He coughed into his elbow, and decided it was as good a time as any to see if there was something to drink in the kitchen… wherever that was.

Wolf left the room, his claws clacking on the metal floor quite obnoxiously, and he turned down the hall to the elevator. He was relieved that the ship was so empty now, but the stench of so many unwashed people still hadn't quite aired out of the cramped hallways. He wrinkled his nose as he reached the door.

When Wolf entered, he looked at the button panel with a small degree of panic, trying to find a mess, a kitchen… anything. Eventually, he settled on the "recreational deck" on one of the lower floors, deciding that was as good a place as any to find a drink. He picked at his cracked claws on the ride, grimacing at how much dirt and grime had gotten underneath them; he really needed a manicure.

The elevator deposited him in a room that finally contrasted from the blank, militaristic halls of the rest of the Great Fox, much to his surprise. Multicolored swathes of carpet were laid out all over the floor, and a large couch was set in front of a flat screen television that took up a good fourth of the far wall.

Wolf ignored the rest, focusing instead on the refrigerator and cupboard next to a dining table. He walked over to it and opened the door, poking his head inside the chilly interior.

After a moment of moving some bad-smelling frozen food and soda around, Wolf grinned, finding a six pack of beer in the back corner of the fridge. He reached in and grabbed a bottle. He licked his chops, his tail wagging.

Looking down at the bottle, his gut caught his attention, which was protruding out a bit and visible for all to see through his tank top. He frowned, setting the beer back into the fridge, his hand hesitating and shaking as it went. Wolf sighed, grabbing a can of soda instead as he shut the door.

He turned around to find Bill leaning on the table with a grin. Wolf scowled at him as he opened the soda. He wrinkled his nose, noting that Bill reeked of sweat and some sort of earthy cologne that poorly masked the stench.

"Watching your weight, dude?" Bill snickered, sitting down on a chair. Wolf did the same, taking a sip of his drink.

"Aren't you supposed to be helping the refugees?" He shot back, setting the soda on the table with a loud thunk.

"Everyone else is out except me and Krystal," Bill replied with a shrug, resting his arms on the table. He gazed at Wolf with his head cocked. "What are you so pissy about?"

Wolf rolled his eyes, taking another drink of his soda. "What am I not pissy about?" He remarked as he rested his chin on his hand. He yawned, leaning back in his chair.

Bill chuckled a bit. "Dude, I'm talking about right now. You look more upset than earlier," he pointed out, and Wolf just looked away.

"Just a bad conversation," he murmured, staring at the wall. He grimaced, wondering what else she saw in him. All of his fears and vulnerabilities had just been laid out because he was careless.

"With Krystal, right?" Bill continued, sitting up in his chair and forcing them to make eye contact.

He nodded, his ears drooping. "She was… she was reading my thoughts against my will. It's just not right," he growled.

Bill frowned, drumming his claws on the table. "That is so not cool, dude. They should be trying to trust you," he stated, his eyes narrowing. Wolf allowed a small smile to appear.

"Yeah. Thanks," he said, picking his soda up. He stood up and emptied the can with one long gulp before throwing it in a trash bin next to the cupboard.

Bill set a hand on his arm, and Wolf winced, to which he quickly withdrew it with an apologetic look. "I know Fox and the others might not trust you as much as they could, dude, but I believe in second chances. If you ever need someone to talk to, you know," he murmured with an easy smile.

Wolf nodded, resting a hand on his hip. "I'll take that into consideration."

"So… where are you going?" Bill asked, his head cocked.

"The bridge, probably. I need to talk to Fox when he gets back," he answered, starting to leave the recreational deck without a word of goodbye to Bill. He simply waved behind him, feeling a little bit better than when he'd entered.

The elevator jolted to life once more, and Wolf stared up at the ceiling, studying the fluorescent light that illuminated the small space. If only his dire situation could be brightened as quickly as a room with a light.

Wolf left the lift and came upon the bridge once more, although this time it was completely empty. He walked past the desks and chairs and stood next to the captain's chair, peering out of the huge glass window to see Katina under the midday sun.

The rocky surface of the planet sprawled out as far as the eye could see, with little streams and ponds dotting the mesas and hills, and he also saw a large military base surrounded by a wall. Wolf could make out the group of refugees milling about in front of the largest building of the base, but it was too far away to tell if Fox and the others were there. He shrugged to himself as he sat down on a chair next to the central table. He yawned, relaxing and settling into his seat as he crossed his arms, closing his eye.

Wolf must have dozed off while he waited, most likely too tired to even have a nightmare, for he was jolted awake by the sound of something slamming onto the table. His eye shot open and he looked at Fox, who was standing across from him with a scowl.

"What?" Wolf grumbled, rubbing his eye while he sat up straight. Fox rolled his eyes, motioning for him to stand up. He did so after taking the time to crack his neck, and Fox rested his hands on his hips.

"Krystal was just trying to help you, you know," he stated with a huff.

Wolf gaped at him. "You- you're serious? She crossed a line, and the line after that!" He shouted. He slammed his fists on the table and leaned closer to Fox.

"It's not my fault she was concerned about your reaction to our decision, even when it was democratic!" Fox exclaimed, mimicking Wolf's action.

"She read my damn mind without my say!" Wolf snarled, his claws digging into the otherwise smooth table.

Fox's eyes widened. "She did what?" He asked, his voice dropping to nearly a whisper. Wolf looked at him with a cocked head, his rage temporarily forgotten.

"When we talked, Krystal looked into my mind and she... saw my fears. She was using them to get something out of me," he admitted, eyeing Fox with contempt.

Fox didn't reply, and Wolf frowned. "Did you put her up to that?"

"No, I didn't," Fox answered, his ears drooping. "Sorry for shouting."

Wolf sighed. "I'm just… confused. Why would she do that?"

"Krystal is a selfless person, even if her ways of helping aren't exactly the most morally effective. I need to give her another talk about that," Fox said, mostly to himself. Wolf sat back down, and he did the same.

"I'm sorry I'm not more enthusiastic about going back to a city that's in chaos," Wolf snorted, his scowl returning full force.

"It's the only way we can get answers," Fox pointed out. Wolf looked down at his bare feet, mulling the statement over in his head.

"Look McCloud, you don't know what the hell you're dealing with yet, and I can't even remember my experience. That doesn't exactly inspire confidence in me," Wolf said, sinking into his chair.

"We're all scared, but we still have to go," Fox replied, clasping his hands together. "You still need to find your team."

Wolf cringed, covering his face with his hands. The memory of his dream played out in his mind, Panther's bloody face etched into his memory with that awful smell of smoke. Wolf could feel himself starting to slip off a cliff and into the void, and he held onto the edge before he fell. He took a breath, trying to dispel the thought and focus on anything else. He opened his eye and stared at Fox intently.

"Yeah, I do," he said, voice just as shaky as his hands. Wolf shook his head, getting up from his chair.

"Hey, where are you going?" Fox asked as he turned away. Wolf's head was starting to hurt, and his breathing was starting to pick up.

"Sleep... tell me when we get to Corneria," he murmured, leaving the bridge. Fox said something to him as he walked away, but he was too busy trying not to focus on Panther and Leon to pay attention.

Wolf slammed the button for the barracks when he got in the elevator and slumped against the wall. That dream just kept playing out in his head, and he groaned. The door closed, and the lift started downward while he kept a shaky hand on the wall.

Wolf had to find his team when they returned to Corneria, and then he would be done. Fox would take care of the problem, and he would run away. He clenched his hands into a fist, taking another deep breath.

Anger and determination burned in his chest; he had to do something and help his team… his friends.

Wolf opened his eye as the lift came to a stop. His head still hurt, and Panther's lifeless face wouldn't leave his mind, but he strode into the hallway, making for his room.

He trudged into the room, and this time he locked the door behind him before he sat on his bed. He stared at the wall, grim determination in his eye.

He was going to find his friends.


	4. Get Out

Memories fade, but are never lost

Search and you will surely find them

They hold secrets

And lessons

* * *

 _"Panther, are you doing alright? You've been distant lately."_

 _"Yes boss, I'm doing fine... just have a lot on my mind."_

 _"Just call me Wolf; we're not fighting some war anymore."_

 _"Sorry b- Wolf. Years of habit, I suppose."_

 _"Hey, is something wrong?"_

 _"Leon and I have been worried about the city; it feels different."_

 _"You sure you're not just delusional?"_

 _"I don't know, I've just got this bad feeling in the pit of my stomach."_

 _"You worry too much."_

 _"Maybe."_

 _"Go get some sleep if you know what's good for you… I'll be there in a few."_

 _"A shame we don't have enough money for a third bed... Leon and his night terrors."_

 _"That's a conversation for later."_

 _"Heh, alright. Good night."_

 _"Night."_

 _"Oh... Wolf?"_

 _"Huh?"_

 _"I'm glad you're here with me. You're my-"_

 _"I know."_

Wolf woke in a cold sweat, his tank top drenched and his hands clammy. He shoved the blankets off his body and reached to the other side for someone to hold, but there was nobody to comfort him.

"Panther was right," he whispered, his eye shut tightly to block the tears.

Wolf tried clearing his head of his thoughts, but they just kept repeating themselves in his head. He whimpered softly before he realized what he was doing, and he sighed, shaking his head.

He got up, looking down and sniffing his shirt to test it's usability. Wolf grimaced as heavy sweat and musk invading his nose, and scanned the room for suitable clothes, his eye settling on the small closet the corner. He got up from the bed and walked over to it, opening the door up. He grabbed the first shirt he saw before he turned back to the bed. Wolf shed his disgusting tank top and threw it on the desk before he put the new shirt on. It was a bit too snug, and if his gut wasn't visible before, it certainly was now. Wolf shrugged to himself, sitting back down to slide his combat boots back on his feet. After that, he grabbed his coat and put it on.

He sniffed his armpits as he walked out of the room and grimaced. Deciding there wasn't much he could do about it, he left.

He walked down the hallway with his hands shoved in his pockets while he looked at the floor, mulling over his dream. One distracted moment later, he slammed into someone and fell to the floor with a yelp of surprise. He looked up to see Bill staring down at him with a sheepish grin. Wolf could pick up the scent of sweat on his Cornerian flight jacket from the floor; nobody must have had time to clean up.

"Sorry dude, I didn't see you there!" Bill exclaimed, reaching a hand down. Wolf took it with a ghost of a smile on his face, getting back up.

"Where are you headed?" He asked, his shoulders relaxing as he walked beside Bill to the elevator.

"The bridge. We're almost at Corneria, dude." Bill raised a brow at Wolf, who shrugged.

"I was sleeping." He looked to the side as Panther's words of warning flitted across his mind again.

"You seem to be doing that quite a lot." Bill entered the lift after Wolf, who frowned as he rubbed his head.

"I can't even remember how long it's been since I got on this ship." He scratched his chin, trying to recall just how many times he had slept since Corneria.

"The General hasn't even tried contacting us after what happened." Wolf looked at him with confusion while Bill stared down at the floor, his blue gaze darkening in a shadow.

"There's no reason to keep that a secret; an entire damn capital city fell!" A clank echoed throughout the space when Wolf kicked the wall.

"He has to contact us when we enter Cornerian airspace, dude," Bill stated. Wolf scratched his ears as he narrowed his eye.

It didn't make any sense for Pepper to abandon his people during a crisis situation and then to cut contact with the people most qualified to handle the job. Wolf shook his head, his tail dropping between his legs. He needed to find out what was in the city, even if the very thought of setting foot down there made him freeze up.

Panther's warning shot through his head again and he clenched his teeth.

The door opened and deposited the pair into the bridge, where people were busy shuffling between various consoles and holomaps. Wolf followed Slippy with a curious gaze, watching him flip through holograms of different G-Diffuser systems and models of the Arwing. He would've walked over to take a closer look, but Bill grabbed his wrist and dragged him over towards the front of the bridge before he could do anything.

Wolf scowled as he led him to Fox, but he didn't protest, if only to keep from instigating another fight. Fox was seated in the captain's chair, and he smiled at Bill when they came to a stop in front of him. He then looked down at Wolf's gut with a contemplative expression, which made Wolf squirm in his spot.

"Bill Grey and Wolf O'Donnell reporting for duty, Commander Fox!" Bill exclaimed, saluting Fox. His face was neutral even as Wolf looked at him with a skeptical gaze.

Fox, however, merely laughed. "At ease, soldier," he chuckled, motioning for Bill to relax. He grinned, resting his hands on his hips.

"What do you need us to do, dude?" Bill took his green pilot's helmet off and held it between his arm and side. Wolf found it rather odd that he kept it on so long.

Fox looked at Wolf, regarding him with a indifferent gaze. Well, it was an improvement from hatred, he supposed. "You any good at working with fighters?"

"Yeah, had to keep my Wolfen in good shape with scraps," Wolf replied, allowing himself a smug grin as he crossed his arms.

Fox looked at him, nonplussed. "Oh… well, uh, in that case you can go help Slippy. He's got some work that he needs help with," he stuttered. Wolf only smiled wider.

"I suppose I can handle it." Wolf ambled towards Slippy, who was situated at his desk and typing away at his computer.

Wolf grabbed a chair from a nearby desk and rolled it over to Slippy, who looked up at him with a frown and slightly widened eyes. He sat down, sighing as he peered at the computer screen.

"Fox told me you needed help with something?" Wolf asked, trying his hardest to keep the edge off his voice. Slippy's shoulders relaxed, and he nodded.

"Yeah. I'm making a new model of G-Diffuser, but I can't get the stabilizers to even out with each other properly. By themselves, they work just fine, but they need to sync with each other to prevent the Arwing from being flattened by the reversed pressure." Wolf nodded along, hanging onto every word even if he didn't quite understand a few of them.

"Show me the diagram," he murmured while he rested his arms on the desk.

Slippy pointed up at the hologram above Wolf's head, and it changed into a diagram of a pair of G-Diffusers, but they were unlike anything he had ever seen. The outer shell was much longer than the design he had seen on the Arwings previously, but it was trimmed down to about half of the original size. Wires and circuitry were entangled in a spider web too complex for Wolf to comprehend on a large scale, and he drank everything in with awe.

"How much did you cram into those?" Wolf looked at Slippy with a widened eye.

He shrugged. "Enough to where I had to use microscopic wiring just to make sure the hydrogen coils could be optimized to use most of the space in it," he stated with a lazy grin. "Zero-point energy is more efficient, but I haven't been able to run tests to see how dangerous it could be. Maximizing the coils is my best option." Wolf raised his brow at the term 'zero-point energy.'

"Then there's your problem; you didn't give enough space for magnets to help balance another Diffuser's energy out. If you look right there," he started, pointing to a spot at the end of the coil, "You didn't leave enough room for them to breathe; at least a centimeter would fix it."

Slippy gawked at him for a moment before shaking his head and turning to his computer to make the necessary adjustments. A moment later, the hologram updated with the necessary constraints added.

"You should probably get your robot friend to start making them," Wolf pointed out with a smirk, looking over at the maintenance machine that was carrying a few crates with it on the other side of the bridge.

"Nobody else here can even remotely understand this; That's real intellect you've got!" Slippy sputtered with a smile. Wolf grinned back, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"If you ever need more help, just let me know," Wolf said, getting up from his chair. He was glad someone appreciated him.

Wolf glanced around the bridge to see if there was anything else he could do, but everyone seemed too busy doing their own thing, whether it be checking diagnostics of the Great Fox or reviewing holomaps of Corneria.

He looked out of the bridge window, and he wasn't too excited to see the glittering jewel of Corneria off in the distance, about five hundred thousand kilometers away if he had to make a rough estimate. It looked just a beautiful as ever, but the capital was still invisible to the naked eye among the cloud cover and sunlight glinting off of the planet.

Wolf walked next to the captain's chair while he observed Corneria, stopping a few feet from Fox, who cleared his throat. Wolf looked at him, the corners of his jowls turned in a frown.

"You able to help Slippy?" Fox asked, the ghost of a smile appearing on his face.

Wolf nodded, his ears perked. "Yeah, it wasn't anything terrible. I fixed his issue," he answered, his eye gleaming triumphantly.

"That's a relief," Fox snarked, rolling his eyes. "That guy can build some amazing stuff, but it takes him forever to decide on what problem to solve and what to build."

"I'd imagine; hell, it must be tough listening to that all day." Wolf scratched the back of his head.

"Don't even get me started."

Wolf glanced back at the scene behind him, and he watched Bill looking over a datapad, stylus in his hand. "What's he doing?" He jerked his head in Bill's direction.

Fox turned the chair to see where he was gesturing, and hummed. "He's piecing all of the information we have to see what caused this."

"Should I help?" Fox looked at him with a strange expression as he scratched his chin.

"I guess if you want to."

Wolf mentally shrugged at Fox before walking over to Bill. He peered over his shoulder at the datapad to see news feeds flying across the screen as Bill flicked his stylus over it.

"Find anything?" Wolf asked, light grin gracing his features. Bill jumped as he registered his presence, but he quickly recovered, shaking his head.

"Huge headlines from the other planets about Corneria going dark, but nothing very specific, dude," he said, closing his eyes and angling his head towards the ceiling. He let out a frustrated groan, setting the pad on a nearby console.

Wolf crossed his arms. "Well why try to look for what isn't there?" He raised his hands in a surrendering gesture.

"There has to be something I missed!" Bill threw his hands in the air with a huff.

"When we get to Corneria, we'll be able to fit this together. Don't start worrying about something you don't have the components for." Wolf shook his head in disapproval, and Bill stuck his younger out at him.

"But this is complete bogus, dude!" Bill's ears drooped and Wolf chuckled, rubbing his shoulder.

"Work yourself to death if you want, it's not my problem." He shrugged, patting Bill one last time before walking away while his tail wagged behind him. Wolf heard Bill grumble something from behind him, and he shook his head with a grin.

He took another look out the window, and Corneria seemed quite a bit closer this time, taking up a good third of his view. It was close enough for him to see the blockade of Cornerian battle cruisers, he noted as his claws dug into his palms. Wolf glanced over at Fox who caught his gaze and nodded at him.

"I'll try to make contact," he said while tapping a screen on one of the arms of his chair. An orange holographic display then appeared in front of him and he started touching through it.

The rest of the team started to congregate around them by now with Wolf in the front. He shared an uncomfortable look with Krystal beside him before they looked away from each other.

Wolf shifted on his feet, trying his best to keep to himself, which was honestly rather hard considering how tightly packed they all were. He frowned, tightening and relaxing his shoulders.

In the blink of an eye another screen appeared, tinting the exterior windows and darkening the bridge. Static crackled on the screen for a second before it cleared up where it showed the good General Pepper himself in a pair of gleaming aviators.

"If it isn't Star Fox. Nice to see you again," he greeted before he glared at Wolf, who shivered but didn't look away from Pepper.

"Wish I could say the same, sir," Fox replied with a yawn. Wolf looked at him as he cocked his head; how could he be so nonchalant?

"I see your ranks have changed since we last met." Pepper rested his chin on his hands. Fox's eyes narrowed a nearly imperceptible amount before he regained his composure.

"I wouldn't have had to if you knew what was going on in your city," he shot back, leaning forward in his chair. Wolf's eye widened as the conversation developed further.

"You've got no idea what you're talking about," the General growled, his hands gripping onto the tassels of his uniform.

Fox hummed. "That does remind me… what exactly did happen in the city? Could you enlighten me about all of that, sir?" His ears pinned to his head.

"I'd say the more important question is why do you have Bill and Wolf with you? Bill is just a coward who abandoned his duty, but Wolf? He's a dishonest criminal who murdered dozens of Cornerians when he worked for Venom, and he's got plenty of counts of armed robbery and murder under his belt from after that! Even you should know that he's nothing but filth!" Pepper exclaimed, vicious grin appearing on his muzzle.

Wolf felt breathless as that was laid out in front of everyone. It was all true and everyone knew it, but to hear it said out loud was a different experience entirely for him. His mistakes were completely exposed now.

Fox's resolve was beginning to break, and Wolf could see it in his eyes. "Unlike you, I care about saving someone's life no matter who they are!" He exclaimed, slamming a fist on his chair.

Pepper nodded. "A selfless expression, something your father would've done." He moved his hands to rest behind his back while he grinned and exposed his fangs.

"You have no right to talk about my dad like that!" Fox shouted, rising from his chair. Peppy rushed beside him and rested a firm hand on his shoulder. Fox glanced at him, taking a deep breath.

Peppy cleared his throat. "Why can't you tell us what this is all about? You make it awfully suspicious when you won't tell us anything," he murmured.

Pepper sighed, adjusting his sunglasses. "What you need to understand is this is a need to know basis situation, and frankly, none of you need to know. Nobody gets in or out of this planet, so turn around before things get worse."

"You've got something to do with this, don't you?" Fox pried, his voice raising once more. Wolf glanced between him and the General with a grimace, shrinking away behind Krystal.

"You have two hours to disperse from Corneria." The feed cut out before Fox could make another protest, and the windows became clear once more.

"That son of a bitch!" Fox shouted, his hand slamming on his chair.

Wolf backed off from the crowd, sitting down on a chair near a console. Pepper's words played out in his mind and he shivered, his insults piercing him to his core. He stared down at the ground, faintly hearing Fox raging in the background. Filth, the General called him. A murderer and thief.

The worst part was that Pepper was right about everything he said.

"W- we have to get down there," Wolf stuttered, which made Fox stop shouting and look over at him.

"What did you say?" He asked, his brows scrunched together.

Wolf cleared his throat before shaking his nerves away. "We need to go to the city and figure this out."

Fox's eyes narrowed. "Last I checked you weren't excited about going to Corneria," he remarked.

Wolf crossed his arms. "It's not like we have a choice."

"Then I'm assuming you just volunteered to go down there." Wolf deadpanned at Fox, his arms hanging limp at his sides.

Fox trapped him in a corner, that was for sure… but he asked for it.

He groaned in defeat. "I guess I did," he said, his tail dropping between his legs.

Fox turned to look at the rest of his team. "Anybody else volunteer to go with me and Wolf?" He inquired as he rested his hands on his hips.

After a moment of contemplation, both Krystal and Bill both raised their hands. Fox smiled and his shoulders relaxed slightly.

Bill grinned. "I've been doing nothing but hanging on your ship and leeching for the past few days, so I need to pay my dues, dude," he remarked with a chuckle as he crossed his hands behind his head.

"Okay, so we'll take two Arwings, sneak past the blockade, get to the city, and find out what caused all of this," Fox stated. Wolf looked over at him with his brows raised.

"Are you sure it's a good idea to be rushing into a suicidal and half-assed plan like this?" He asked, his voice rising a bit.

"You heard what the esteemed General said; we've got two hours." Fox bared his teeth, trying his hardest to intimidate someone a good foot taller than him.

"When we die on this mission, I'll have told you so." Wolf glared at Fox, who accepted the challenge with open arms. They both stared each other down for a moment, Wolf prying for any weakness he could find in Fox's eyes.

"Quit it, boys!" Krystal exclaimed, shoving her way between the two and pushing them both back.

"Sorry," Fox muttered as he scratched the top of his head.

Wolf felt his cheeks burn, and he crossed his arms. "Let's get going."

Wolf shouldered his way past a scowling Falco, making a beeline for the elevator. He could hear a few sets of boots clanging on the floor behind him, although he didn't bother to look back. He didn't have a choice except to go along with Fox and his ludicrous plans, but it was the only way to find Panther and Leon.

He was going to find his family.

A/N: This is a long overdue thanks to some people for ripping apart my chapters to make them better before I post them. Special thanks to my friends drbananaface, Reciprocate, Fog, and Raelx for proofreading this story so far for me! Every bit helps, and I'm glad you guys are down for looking it over!


	5. Typhoon

A/N: Made some edits.

* * *

Tread carefully across the bridge of life

Or plummet into the sea of death

Nobody cares what will happen to you

But take heed, and step lightly

* * *

Wolf crossed his arms, looking up at Fox as he climbed on the Arwing in front of him. Fox checked circuitry and deterioration on the G-Diffusers and made sure the dated engine wasn't going to fail midflight as he explained his process, which painted a grim picture in Wolf's mind.

Bill merely laughed, slapping Wolf on the back. "What's a good flight without a little bit of danger, dude?" He asked before putting his green pilot's helmet on.

"It's certainly not a good flight," Wolf replied as he raised his brow at a side panel falling off of the Arwing. How long had it been since Star Fox maintained their ships?

"How are we planning to get past this blockade?" Krystal piped up, cradling her chin with her hand.

Fox looked up from the exposed part of the Arwing, parts of his fur smudged black with grease and oil. Wolf wrinkled his nose as he caught the scent. "The sensors on Cornerian dreadnoughts like the ones blocking our path pick up high end energy signatures on ships. Because of the asteroid belt around the planet, using regular and electromagnetic sensors would be completely useless, so power signatures are the compromise. If we let the Arwings drift without power, we can make it past no problem dude," Bill spoke up while Fox tightened the panel back into place when he finished.

"That's pretty ballsy," Wolf murmured while he was fixing the unkempt collar of his duster.

"It's the only option we have." Fox climbed down from the ship, his boots hitting the ground with a loud clang. "Everything should be good to go."

"Then let's get this over with." Wolf cracked his knuckles and neck before he walked up to the Arwing and climbed atop it, opening the cockpit hatch. There was just enough space in the fighter to accommodate two people, and he seated himself in the back. He strapped in while he went through a mental safety checklist, most boxes he couldn't fill in since he wasn't the pilot.

Wolf sighed as he looked over the controls of the Arwing. The controls were similar to a Wolfen's, but they were on both sides of the cockpit. "Setup for two eyes, and I've only got one." He touched his eye patch and grimaced.

Fox climbed in a moment later with his headset on, and he closed the cockpit, a loud hiss alerting them that it was properly sealed. He flipped a few switches, and the G-Diffusers hummed to life, albeit much quieter than the dull roar of a Wolfen.

Fox turned around and handed Wolf a headset similar to the one he wore. He took it and fit it on around his head, glad to see it wasn't too snug.

"Communications line… green," Fox said, and Wolf heard two other comm signals crackle to life.

"Ready to roll, dudes?" Bill asked, static distorting his voice a bit.

"Locked and loaded," Fox answered and grabbed the joystick. "We're primed for launch." Wolf drummed his fingers on the armrests of his seat as the Arwing lurched off the ground.

"Hey McCloud, why not just launch the fighters using the electromagnets?" Wolf asked, looking over Fox's shoulder while he fiddled with his sensitivity controls.

"We're not that far from the fleet; that would be a pretty big energy pulse." Fox guided the Arwing gently out of the hangar and into open space. Wolf could see Krystal's ship doing the same in the corner of his vision.

"Fair point." He settled back into his chair with a huff.

The Arwings rounded past the Great Fox, and the fleet orbiting Corneria came into view. Wolf swallowed at seeing the monstrous ships positioned about the planet; they must have been the size of cities up close! Pepper must have wanted to increase the strength of the military after the planet nearly fell to ruin twice in a decade, and doing so with bigger ships than he could imagine was a start.

"Cut your power in five minutes, Krystal," Fox instructed, already turning weapons systems offline. Wolf squirmed in his seat while he felt his heart rate picking up.

"Got it."

"What happens after we make it through?" Wolf raised his brows and bit a claw.

"We turn the thrusters back on and head through the belt to the city." Fox flipped a few more switches which turned more auxiliary power systems off.

"If there are Cornerian patrols in the rocks?" Wolf leaned forwards in his seat with his arms crossed. Was Fox just improvising as they went at this point?

"We deal with them." Fox's eyes narrowed and his jowls dropped into a grimace. Wolf stayed silent, surprised to see him so… confident of his actions.

Wolf stared out at the Cornerians, studying the dreadnoughts for any weaknesses. They were shaped almost like a rectangular block, but the tops of the ships were dotted with plenty of turrets, as well as a bridge on the rear side of the craft which jutted out from the rest of it.

He could also spot several hangars just on one side of the dreadnought, at least six, and just as many on the other side if he had to guess. He counted at least a dozen of them from his viewpoint, and he had to imagine there were plenty more all around the planet positioned just outside the asteroid belt.

"Power down in ten seconds," Fox stated, jolting Wolf from his thoughts.

"Understood," Krystal replied with a hushed tone, as if she thought the Cornerians were listening in on their radio.

"Three…"

Wolf's grip on his armrests tightened.

"Two…"

He gritted his teeth, wishing he could stay as collected as Fox was.

"One… now!" Fox flipped a handful of switches at once, and the G-Diffusers stopped humming while the neon display cut out.

Wolf glanced out the window once more and indeed saw Krystal's ship floating aimlessly in the void. He held his breath, though; they weren't out of the fire yet.

The cruisers loomed ahead of them like great watchtowers of a fortress, poised and ready to annihilate anything that should try to breach its defenses. They couldn't have been more than a few hundred meters away from the first one.

"People can use their eyes to see us, too." Wolf's eye narrowed when he leaned forward in his seat to talk.

"That requires a skill few know." Fox allowed a smile to form on his face, and Wolf rolled his eye when he caught it on the reflection of the glass. So damn confident.

Fox was a much different person in the sky compared to the ground. He was calmer and more collected, enough so for him to have an air of confidence when he fought. That was such a change from the timid and inexperienced person he knew during the Lylat Wars, and Wolf didn't know how he felt about that.

The Arwing continued to drift towards the planet and through the fleet, and Wolf found himself having to look up to see the belly of the beast above them.

So far so good.

Wolf was feeling short of breath, but it could've just been his nerves acting up. "Life support still on?"

"It's not." Fox spared a glance back at him with a frown etched on his face.

"Are you out of your damn mind, McCloud?" Wolf clawed at the back of Fox's seat, his claws sinking into the fabric without any resistance.

"There's more than enough oxygen to go around if you don't flip your shit!" Fox glared at Wolf with such a sharp intensity that he let go of the chair and settled back into his spot.

That insane, good for nothing-

"Sorry, that wasn't cool of me." Fox whispered as his eyes softened and seemed to turn a much more vibrant green when a flash of sunlight passed over him. Wolf nodded with a dismissive wave, choosing to keep his mouth shut this time.

A shadow passed over the Arwing and Wolf squinted his eye in reflex to see a massive asteroid fly past them and slam into an equally monstrous one. They collided with such a force that he probably would've had his eardrums shattered were they not in the vacuum of space. Much to their luck, shards of debris as large as Wolfens started hurtling towards the fighters.

"Start the ship up!" Wolf looked at Fox with a widened eye.

"We aren't out of range yet!" Fox held the joystick with a white-knuckled grip. The shards were only a few seconds away from destroying their Arwing.

"You wanna die?"

Time seemed to play out in slow motion for Wolf as the debris launched itself ever closer to them-

"You win!" Fox switched the Arwing on and angled the ship sideways just in time to avoid being turned into an unpleasant new type of shredded meat. Wolf let loose a breath he didn't realize he was holding and fell limp.

"Sounds like we're rushing in, huh dude?" Bill asked, his resolute tone cracking with his voice.

"We don't have a choice now." Fox maneuvered around more chunks of rock with incredible skill that only someone with excellent reflexes could perform, which made Wolf cover his mouth with his hands as he watched.

"We're right behind you, Fox," Krystal said, to which Fox didn't reply as he continued to fly through the asteroid belt.

Wolf hoped those behemoths hadn't spotted him, but with his luck he knew they picked them up. He bit his claws in apprehension when Fox scraped just a few feet away from some debris large enough to put a sizeable dent in the Great Fox.

Wolf leaned forward in his chair. "Where are you gonna land us?"

"Downtown if we're able. People seemed to have been running from the center of the city." Fox took a few more hairpin turns and they were out of the belt and back onto the open, staring at a much larger planet now. It was taking up all of Wolf's vision, but the cloud cover was still too thick for him to see the city. No Cornerian fighters in sight, for the moment at least.

The Arwing started flying toward the cloud cover, which upon further examination turned out to be a massive hurricane bowling over the entire coast, and from what Wolf could remember, the worst of it was above the city. He cursed viciously in his head.

"That's gonna suck to scout in." Wolf crossed his arms with a scowl on his face. Fox nodded, glancing back to look at him with determined eyes.

"I know, but we can handle it." He paused for a moment while he pulled his green eyepiece down from the side of the helmet. "Peppy, this is Fox. We made it through the belt and are coming up on atmospheric entry."

"Good job Fox, but a few of the dreadnoughts released their fighters to pursue you and trained their turrets on us. What do we need to do?" Peppy asked, his voice a little shaky.

"Get out of range and send a map to my headset; there's a hurricane covering the city and visibility is null." Fox's grip on the joystick tightened.

"Understood, it's been sent." There was a short pause, and Wolf could hear Peppy's distressed breathing. "Please be careful, Fox."

Fox didn't reply, but his eyepiece lit up in a display of vibrant colors. "Krystal, I'm sending the overlay to you now. The capital is marked on it." He tapped a few buttons on his console.

"Received. This is going to be one hell of a ride," she replied with a bit of excitement in her voice. How could they be looking forward to dealing with the rain and wind?

"Atmospheric entry in one." Fox resolved cracked and he started to frown. "I hate this part."

Wolf snorted. "What's to hate about your ship catching on fire?" Fox shot him a glare, but Wolf rolled his eye. "The ship is built to take it, shouldn't be any cause for worry." Fox turned his radio off.

"Say that to my father!" Fox snarled while his claws sunk into the joystick.

Wolf opened his mouth to retaliate, but then he shut it when he saw Fox's face. His jowls were curled in a snarl, but his eyes were glassy and shining. "Fox, I-"

"No, you're done talking." The sadness drained from Fox and he looked down at the hurricane with volcanic fury. He turned his radio back on. "Atmospheric entry in three seconds."

Wolf could start to feel the Arwing lurch, but the G-Diffusers kicked on and canceled out the opposing force and kept the fighter from shaking. The windshield erupted in bright orange flame, and Fox's breathing picked up. He started to pant, but curiously enough he tapped his fingers on the joystick in a repeating pattern.

I'm such a dumbass.

He pressed his hand to his forehead while he watched Fox, guilt racking through him in waves. His stomach twisted up in knots and his voice caught when he tried to say something, so he just tried to let it go.

Soon enough the fire cleared, presenting Wolf with a much more personal view of the storm. Fox released a loud breath before angling the Arwing close to the eye of the hurricane, which was a massive portal to a washed out and flooded world.

Wolf could spot a few high rises near the edge of the eye like fingers clawing their way to the clouds. Nothing seemed out of place from a few kilometers in the sky at least.

"We're going through the eye, get ready," Fox murmured as he glanced over to his right. Krystal and Bill were still holding up the formation, and there was no damage to be found on their craft.

"Understood, dude." Bill's voice was clear and confident and Wolf swore he could hear a grin in that statement.

"The city has hurricane defenses, right?" Krystal's voice was uncertain and shaky. Wolf looked up at Fox for confirmation, but he didn't look back. Wolf rubbed a hand across the bridge of his nose.

"Yes, but they're not automatic." Fox furrowed his brows and Wolf found himself starting to worry as well.

The closer they edged to the storm, the more in awe Wolf became of it. It had to be at least a thousand kilometers in diameter, which sent a pang of fear straight into his gut.

"Is there anywhere that we can land?" Krystal questioned. Wolf peered over Fox's shoulder and studied the eye more carefully. Most of the area was just a field, but right at the edge he could make out the apartment buildings of the residential district.

"We need to keep our ships safe somewhere high but covered." Fox scratched his chin. "Anyone see anything?" They were just about to enter the eye, and the city was rising up to meet them.

"How about one of the parking garages?" Wolf suggested, his voice quiet. Fox just nodded, much to his relief.

The Arwings came ever closer and the city still looked the same as ever, but it wasn't alive. There were no cars in the skyways, no people in the streets, no lights on in the buildings.

Nothing. It was dead.

Nobody spoke when they came level with the city. The edge of the eye was about two kilometers from the apartments, and Wolf couldn't see anything past the rain that was pouring down so hard it was like a thick fog enveloping everything.

"There's a garage directly north-northeast of us, dude. At least twenty stories tall," Bill murmured. Fox thanked him for pointing it out and the two fighters angled towards the building.

When they came closer and slowed to a hover, Wolf could see cars piled up in the place like a traffic jam. The open windows were just tall enough for the relatively flat Arwings to fit through, so they entered with caution and set down in a spot in the corner of the floor big enough to fit both vehicles.

The hatch opened and Wolf unbuckled himself before he climbed out of the Arwing and hit the floor with a loud thud. The first thing he noticed when he stood straight was the eerie silence of everything. The city was usually noisy from vehicles and people and even the wind, but now it was just...

Silent.

Wolf suppressed a shiver before he turned around to join Fox and the others huddled around the storage compartment underneath the main chassis of the ship. Upon further inspection, he found that it held raincoats, four blaster pistols, and two first aid kits. Fox gave everybody a coat, and Wolf took his duster off and threw it into the Arwing. He didn't want the leather to get ruined, after all.

Bill and Krystal both grabbed a pistol, but before Wolf could, Fox pushed his wrist out of the way. "Who said you could get one?" Wolf's ears drooped.

"Trust goes both ways, you know." Wolf kept his arm raised towards the gun while he stared Fox down.

Finally, he broke his gaze and backed up, allowing Wolf to grab a blaster. He did so and holstered it as his belt before slipping the clear raincoat on over his pudgy belly.

"What's the plan boss?" Bill looked over at Fox while he fiddled with the sleeve of his coat.

"Make our way to the center of the city, but we need to be careful. Who knows what we'll find down on those streets?" Fox climbed on the Arwing and closed the hatch before coming back down. "The most important thing is that we stay together. No splitting up; that's how we all die." Fox set his hands on his hips as he looked everyone over.

"We should get going. That storm won't wait for us." Wolf looked over his shoulder at the eye wall. Did it get closer in just a few minutes?

Fox nodded and started to walk towards an external stairwell located behind the Arwings. The others quickly followed him right after Krystal made sure to grab the first aid kits. She shoved one into Wolf's hands without looking at him, and he gritted his teeth.

"You can't act like that crap with my mind didn't happen earlier," he hissed as he stowed the kit on his belt.

Krystal sighed. "This is not the place for my apology, okay? We can talk later." She followed Fox who was about to descend the stairwell.

Wolf blinked. That… wasn't what he expected. She wasn't going to defend herself at all?

"Bro, you good?" Bill clapped a hand on his shoulder while they followed the other two down the concrete steps.

"Yeah… just a little nervous." Wolf forced a grin and Bill nodded. He glanced at Krystal as she set a hand on Fox's shoulder and winced.

"It's about your team, isn't it? That's why you're still here?" Bill didn't seem accusatory in his question, and Wolf felt his shoulders relax.

He looked down at Fox and Krystal who were chatting together. They seemed comfortable with each other's company, and that sent a pang of… something into his stomach.

"They're my family." Wolf's hands tightened into fists and Bill smiled.

"And we're going to help you find them, dude."


	6. Ressurections

A/N: Changed the story title from Deathwish to Spanish Sahara, as the song fits the story much better. Sorry for any confusion, and for the lack of an update.

Also, suggested listening: Ressurections from the Celeste Soundtrack

* * *

Fire fills the sky  
Something is being cleansed  
I watch in awe  
Wondering if I'm next

* * *

Wolf stepped out of the stairwell and into the grey light of the motionless city. Everything was washed out and dull, making the colors of their clothes look saturated in comparison to the buildings.

The group picked their way through a graveyard of wrecked vehicles, keeping their eyes peeled for… anything.

The wind howled through the empty streets like a warning to turn back. Wolf ignored the call and pressed on just behind Fox.

"What happened here?" Fox's voice was barely above a whisper.

"If I could remember I'd tell you." Wolf kept a tight grip on his pistol.

"Like anything you say is reliable." Fox picked up his pace to catch up with Krystal. Wolf's ears drooped; he felt heavy.

Bill rested a hand on his shoulder. Wolf shook it off with a growl.

 _Why?_

Wolf tightened the grip on his handgun. It was so silent, nothing could be heard but their footfalls. The storm wall taunted them, daring them to come closer.

They weren't far away now.

Wolf climbed over wrecked cars and trucks, and even a few that had crashed down from the skyway above them. He suppressed a whimper.

Where were the bodies?

"We're nearly to the city center," Krystal stated. Wolf swallowed, made sure the safety on his gun was disengaged.

"I can smell… smoke?" Fox frowned. He looked around. "There's no fire."

"The city was burning before." Wolf bit his lip. He pulled the hood on his raincoat up. An acrid tang filled his nostrils.

"This doesn't smell like a building fire, man." Bill was frowning. He sounded lost.

The smell overtook Wolf; something was happening. His head throbbed painfully. Pressure mounted in his skull. Something clicked in his mind.

Bodies. Black, disfigured, melted bodies.

Wolf's eye widened. "It's them. They're here." He grabbed Bill by the collar and pulled him close.

Fox turned to look at him. "What? What's here?" He and Krystal approached slowly.

"Get _down_ ," Wolf hissed before dragging Bill behind an overturned truck. The other two joined them.

Wolf's chest threatened to burst, and his hands were shaking. He took a deep breath. Bill opened his mouth, but Wolf pressed a finger to his lips.

Wolf strained his ears. It was quiet, but that oppressive smell remained. The cool metal of the truck bed rubbed against his fur and he grimaced.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

Wolf froze. He looked to the others, who all nodded. That haze was being lifted from his mind and replaced with fear.

He mouthed, _don't move._

A low moan sounded from behind the truck, a call of the dead. Wolf froze, his confidence lost. Another moan, this one louder. His breath quickened.

Bill set a hand on his arm, but Wolf couldn't move. He heard thunder rumble in the distance and flinched.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.

Memories rushed back through him like a dam that had been broken. He clutched at his head, mouth opened in a silent scream. Consciousness slipped from his fingers, and he hit the floor.

* * *

 _"Wolf, get up."_

 _"Go… go 'way. It's frickin' late."_

 _Wolf flipped Panther the bird before rolling over._

 _"There's something wrong." Panther was… scared._

 _Wolf shot up, rubbing his eye. "What's going on?"_

 _Panther stood in the doorway, gun in hand. Wolf dressed and joined him._

 _"People are panicking, the streets are gridlocked." Panther gave Wolf a gun. "Panther knows something is happening."_

 _Wolf followed him to the living room where Leon was leaning on the back of a sofa. He was shifting on his feet and fiddling with a knife while he glanced about the room._

This is bad.

 _"Nothing on the news, radio is out," Leon murmured. Wolf bit his claws._

 _"Let's go outside." Wolf grabbed his coat from the stand. He opened the door and bright orange light flooded his vision._

 _Panther gasped. "Fire?"_

 _The building across from their tiny apartment complex was consumed in an inferno. People screamed._

 _"What are we gonna do?" Wolf was surprised to hear those words slip from his mouth. His gun almost fell from his hand._

 _Leon pointed a shaky finger at the street two stories below. "W- what the hell?"_

 _A civilian was being torn apart by a monster made of oil. It looked humanoid, but its claws were oversized and its head was just an oversized maw and nothing else. An oily substance dripped all over the ground when it moved._

 _The sounds of crunching bones and ripping flesh filled the air._

 _An ear-splitting moan pierced the screaming._

 _Wolf couldn't move. He couldn't help but watch as that man was mutilated._

 _And long after he died, the monster stuffed the remnants of the man into its chest and convulsed. It grew larger and scattered that oil everywhere._

 _More ungodly moans split the air._

 _"We need to go." Panther grabbed Wolf's wrist and started to run._

 _Wolf had been dragged halfway down an alleyway before he realized what was going on. He shook off Panther's grip and ran unassisted beside Leon._

 _Wolf's eye widened. "Our ships-"_

 _"Are wherever they are running from," Panther cut him off. They ground to a halt at the end of the alley where it let out into another street._

Shit.

 _"We need to get out of the city." Wolf saw cars gridlocked on the street, but they were all empty. Some were on fire._

 _But there were no bodies._

 _Panther crept from the alley and started to head down the sidewalk going north. Wolf and Leon followed._

 _Wolf saw puddles of that oil dotted around the place. Upon closer examination, he found that they smelled terrible but didn't have that rainbow-like film oil had, but rather didn't reflect any light, not even from the inferno raging above their heads._

 _Wolf shuddered and ran to catch up with his friends._

 _The three of them were able to get through a good part of the city without encountering any problems, but there were fires everywhere._

 _A moan stopped them in their tracks._

 _Panther dove behind a wrecked car and Wolf and Leon did the same. Wolf peeked his head over the hood of the vehicle and saw one of those creatures standing on a truck not far away. It was just… still._

 _Panther jerked his head towards an alley on the other side of the street, and Wolf nodded. He raised a finger to his lips before he grabbed his pistol from its holster._

 _They crept along the side of the car, and when the time came, ducked behind another. The creature emitted another moan and sent a shudder down Wolf's spine._

 _Panther stopped and Wolf nearly ran into him. He sniffed and his eyes widened. It smelled like burning flesh._

 _Another moan, this time closer._

 _Wolf turned his head and came face to face with a monster breathing down his neck. Its breath reeked of something horrible, and it felt far too thick to be oxygen._

 _He screamed and fired the gun._

 _It melted to the floor and soaked his boots._

 _As soon as it melted, however, it started to reshape itself._

 _"Run!" Panther shouted before hoisting Wolf to his feet._

 _The moans turned into howls as Wolf ran to the alley with the others. Fear surged through his veins and made him run faster than he ever would've been able to when he was fit._

 _The first thing Wolf noticed when they entered the alley was that it was burning. The building walls had caught fire and debris was raining on them from above._

 _"The buildings are collapsing!" Wolf shouted to the others over the roar of the blaze. He spared a glance over his shoulder to see the monsters advancing on them, their maws hanging open at unnatural angles._

 _The alleyway opened up into a small courtyard in the center of the block of buildings and gave them quite a few options to flee to._

 _Panther turned his head and opened his mouth to say something-_

 _Boom._

 _A deafening crash shook the ground and sent Wolf tumbling to the floor. He slammed the back of his head on the pavement and his eyesight started to fade._

Oh... No…

 _He glanced around to find Panther, but he couldn't see anything except rubble. His vision went to black._

 _Panther, I'm sorry._

* * *

 _When Wolf awoke, he was alone._

 _He got up and clutched at his head while looking around. He was in some alley, and the way behind him was blocked by metal and chunks of concrete._

 _"Panther? Leon?" Wolf stumbled out of the alley and into a street filled with people running._

 _They were running to the Great Fox at the end of the street._

What's happening?

 _Wolf found his feet walking in the direction of this ship before his mind could make sense of anything. What was everyone running from?_

 _Flashes of shapeless things entered his mind, but he couldn't make sense of a single thing. He growled and shook his head._

 _Maybe Fox and his team would let him in._

* * *

 _Reality was distorted. The sky was orange._

 _Wolf felt suffocating weights press down on his chest. Someone was laughing in his ears. Legs weren't working._

 _They buckled and snapped under the immense pressure._

 _He howled in pain._

 _"Try to run now," that cruel voice taunted._

 _Wolf screamed._

* * *

"-so heavy!"

"Let me take him, man."

"No, just keep running."

Wolf was pressed against something warm. He opened his eye to find his muzzle slumped against the back of Fox's neck. His arms were looped around it and locked together on Fox's chest, while he was holding Wolf's legs.

Wolf was being carried. By Fox.

His view of the other man shattered into pieces.

The storm wall loomed over them like a wild animal poised to strike at a moment's notice.

"F… Fox?" Wolf craned his neck to look at Fox.

"You're awake!" Fox's eyes were wide.

"Clearly." Wolf narrowed his eye. "I remember now." He tapped the side of his head and Fox nodded.

"Where's your team?" Fox's voice was quiet.

"I don't know." Wolf sighed.

"Guys, we need to find some shelter; the hurricane is about to hit us!" Bill exclaimed.

Check that apartment building, could be a shelter." Krystal pointed to a building to their left. Fox nodded and started to run towards it, Wolf still in tow.

They entered the building and into a darkened lobby. Wolf grabbed the kit Krystal had given him and opened it to find a small flashlight contained with the medical supplies. He turned it on and waved it around the room.

"There."

He focused the light on a sign by the hallway that had a hurricane shelter sign on it. They went down the hall and followed the signs until they came to a metal door at the end of a hallway marked "PUBLIC HURRICANE SHELTER." Bill heaved open the thick door and they entered it.

Krystal tested the light switch, and sure enough, a single overhead light in the middle of the room turned on.

The shelter wasn't incredibly large. It had a few folding chairs scattered about it and a bench along one wall. A small television was set up in one corner of the room with a radio next to it, and a small cupboard and fridge in another corner.

Bill heaved the door shut behind them and pressed a button beside the light switch to seal it.

"Time to ride it out," Bill murmured while he walked over to the cupboard.

"Gonna let you down now." Fox let go of Wolf's legs.

Wolf loosened his grip on Fox, but the moment he did his legs collapsed and he fell to the floor.

"I- I can't feel my legs." Wolf started to breathe faster. He tried to move his legs but they wouldn't respond. "What's going on?"

Fox helped him on the nearest chair. "Did you get hurt before you blacked out?" Contempt was horribly disguised in his voice.

"Of course not, asshole!" Wolf growled and tried again, but it wasn't working. He took a breath.

"How did you escape?" Wolf asked while Fox moved to sit across from him on another chair.

"Didn't stop running." Fox, sensing the next question, continued, "You were out for about twenty minutes." He clasped his hands together.

"You carried me?" Wolf's voice was soft.

"Yeah." Fox cleared his throat and looked away. "I don't hate you." He was talking so quietly Wolf shook his head.

Fox's words shot through him like lightning.

"Plenty of supplies in here!" Bill shut the cupboard and nodded to himself, interrupting Wolf before he could formulate a response.

"TV doesn't work, radio might." Krystal picked up the radio and sat down on the bench where she started to fiddle with it.

The room became quiet.

Wolf tried to move his legs, but they just weren't responding.

"Why… why can't I move?" Wolf felt panic rise up in his chest, smothering his lungs. He slammed a fist against one, but felt nothing.

"Whoa, dude. Calm down." Bill rushed over and set an arm on his shoulder. "Take a breath."

Bill's easy smile loosened Wolf up, and he started to take deep breaths. His legs lay limp and lifeless. "It's gonna be alright," Bill whispered as he patted Wolf's shoulder.

"This happened after you woke up?" Krystal asked. She scooted closer to the rest of them and cradled her chin in a hand.

Wolf nodded. "I remembered what… what happened to me. What those monsters were." He shuddered and wrapped his arms around himself.

Krystal reached a hand out towards Wolf, but he moved his chair away. "Get your psychic shit the hell away from me!" He growled and raised a fist.

Krystal frowned; her hand faltered. "I just want to help you."

"I don't want your damn pity." Wolf sat up tall and puffed his chest out. His teeth were bared in a snarl.

"Wolf, please." Fox held a hand up and sighed.

"So this shit is my fault now?" Wolf jabbed a thumb at his own chest.

"I never said that-"

"Then why am I the first one you go after?" Wolf's ears pinned to the back of his head, but he was still loud.

"Guys, chill the _hell_ out!" Bill roared while he slammed a hand against his chair.

The room fell silent.

"This is no time to be at each other's throats." Bill pressed a hand to his temple and started massaging it. "We have to be solid. Cool?"

Fox sighed. "Yeah. Okay." He avoided Wolf's piercing gaze.

Bill looked at Wolf. "This is tough. Just try to keep it together, dude." He smiled faintly.

Wolf sighed and held his head. "How long are we gonna be here?"

Fox pulled a PDA from his pocket and turned it on. "Great Fox, this is Fox McCloud. Do you copy?"

Static. Nothing.

Fox narrowed his eyes. "Great Fox, do you copy?"

More static.

Fox growled. "Come on!" He set the PDA on the floor and ran a hand through his head fur.

Bill shook his head. "Doesn't matter, man. Hurricanes like this can last for days." He crossed his arms and frowned.

"We can't stay here!" Fox's eyes were wide and filled with fear.

Wolf shook his head, pressure mounting in his chest. "We have to find my team." My family.

"The city is massive!" Fox extended his arms as he spoke.

"Do you even know where they'd be?" Krystal cocked her head.

Wolf stroked his chin. Where would they have gone in the past… two days? Three? There were plenty of places in an abandoned city to hide, unless…

 _Oh. Oh no._

Wolf looked at the ground as his stomach churned. "They… might not be in the city."

Fox stared unblinkingly at Wolf. "So what you're saying is-"

Wolf raised his arms in defense. "I'm not saying that!" He bit his lip. "We need to go to the spaceport." He braced himself for the worst.

Instead, Fox grabbed his PDA and opened a holographic map of the city before he set it on the ground in between the four of them. He zoomed in on their location which was marked in orange. The Arwings were a good dozen or so blocks away and marked in green.

"Where's the spaceport?"

Wolf pointed to a large rectangle about a quarter of a kilometer away from their position. "That's it."

Fox sighed. "We've got some walking to do." He looked down at Wolf's legs. "But…"

Wolf winced, shame heating his face up. "Get me some crutches then!" He crossed his arms and huffed.

"I can search the building," Bill offered. Wolf felt warm gratitude rise up in his chest.

"I'd rather you didn't." Fox shook his head.

"Are you expecting us to hold out for a few days?" Krystal rested a hand on her hip.

"We need to move." Wolf stared at Fox with a tired gaze. His hand clenched around an imaginary can of beer while his eye twitched.

Fox raised his hands in surrender. "Fine, we leave." He paused for a second, his tail swishing slowly behind him. "After the eye wall hits."

"When is that?" Wolf raised a brow.

"Dude, we'll know." Bill grimaced. His tail was tucked down underneath his chair and his eyes were downcast.

Wolf shrunk into his chair.

Tears threatened to well up. "I just need some damn answers." Wolf shielded his watery eye with a hand. He sniffed.

 _Panther, I'm so terrified. Where are you? Please be safe. Please keep Leon safe. Please._

"We all want them," Fox replied. Wolf felt a hand touch his shoulder and he flinched.

"Is your team missing?" Wolf's voice was barely a whisper.

No response.

"Yeah, thought so." Wolf shook off the hand and looked up at the smooth metal ceiling.

Outside, the wind howled.

Fear crawled into his chest and settled with the force of a boulder.


	7. Big God

A/N: Suggested listening: Big God by Florence + The Machine

* * *

The waves go by  
And I'm filled with sorrow  
As intense as a hurricane  
As enduring as the ocean

* * *

"You guys hear that?"

Screaming and boulders hitting the ground. That's all Wolf could hear.

"That's the eye wall," Bill murmured while he clasped his hands together.

The lights flickered. Wolf swallowed. More screaming.

"How long is it gonna be like that?" Wolf shuddered and wrapped his arms around himself.

"Won't know till it gets quieter." Bill shrugged.  
"This was supposed to be two hours long, but…" Krystal furrowed her brows.

"The ceasefire." Wolf nodded. He looked to the floor. "This shit was all my idea."

Fox sighed and shook his head. "Don't…" he stopped himself. "We have to finish this mission." His mouth was open for another sentence, but he shut it.

Wolf closed his eye and saw phosphenes made of stars. "Right."

"Wolf, you need crutches." Bill looked around the shelter.

"I don't see any here." Wolf crossed his arms and raised a brow.

"I can carry him again." Fox leaned forward in his chair. Wolf felt something twinge in his chest. Gratitude?

"You- you don't have to." Wolf avoided Fox's gaze and frowned. "I can handle myself." The words came out like knives, and he groaned inwardly.

"It was just an offer, jeez." Fox's eyes were downcast. Pangs of guilt shot through Wolf.

He opened his mouth to apologize, but Bill cut him off. "I can't find anything makeshift but I can carry you." Bill smiled and gave him a thumbs up.

Wolf was silent. He tried moving a leg. Nothing.

He huffed. _Figures._

"Okay, Fox." Wolf's voice was quiet.

"What?" Fox cocked his head at Wolf.

Wolf bit his lip. "Ugh, I'd like your help. To carry me." He grimaced.

Fox smiled devilishly. "What's the magic word?" He crossed his arms and leaned closer to Wolf.

Wolf growled. "Please..." That immature little-

"See, wasn't so hard was it?" Fox chuckled and leaned back into his seat.

"Don't push your luck, pup." Wolf glared at Fox something fierce, but it didn't deter him in the slightest.

Krystal cleared her throat. "Do you hear that?" She held up a hand and the others stopped talking.

Nothing. Wolf strained his ears, but the screaming was gone.

"The worst has passed." Bill got up from his seat and stretched with many a grunt. That easy smile appeared on his face and Wolf felt himself relax a little.

"But what about the hurricane defenses?" Krystal frowned and scratched her chin.

Fox got up and walked over to Wolf to help him out. "Expect flooding."

Fox turned around and crouched in front of Wolf who wrapped his arms around his neck. Fox put his under Wolf's legs and lifted him up with a grunt.

"Damn, you've been working out." Fox snickered, and Wolf growled into his ear.

"Try alcoholism, smartass." Wolf barely resisted the urge to claw Fox.

"Pudgy stomach suits you." Fox shrugged. "Makes you more approachable." Wolf rolled his eyes.

I'm going to die with this idiot. Holy shit.

"Come on, let's go." Bill put the hood of his raincoat up and walked over to the door. He tapped the button to unseal the door and opened it.

They came face to face with a completely different hall. Where the walls where once pristine and clean, they were now damp and dirty. The floor had at least an inch of standing water covering it. A light fixture hung from the ceiling and dangled above the water with deadly intent. A spark flew from the exposed water.

Bill trudged through the water and pulled a knife from his pants pocket before he started to cut the light from the wires. When he finished, he set it on a metal table that had washed down the hallway.

"Just... In case." Bill eyed the malevolent wiring with suspicion, but they continued down the transformed hallway, the portal to their new reality.

The lobby was an even worse sight. The water was flooding the ground, but furniture was turned over and displaced. Glass windows were shattered and the shards were floating in the water along with piles of debris and trash.

Wolf was thankful for his combat boots.

Rain was pelting inside from the broken windows in waves, and outside it looked to be raining sideways. The flooding was much worse. The water was ankle deep outside.

Bill didn't bother to open the door; instead, he climbed through the broken window. Krystal and Fox followed his example, and they all left the building and into the hurricane.

Wolf's legs were drenched as soon as he was exposed to the rain, but his raincoat kept his torso from becoming waterlogged.

"Do you know where we're going?" Bill shouted over the roaring wind.

"Map on my eyepiece!" Fox pointed to his headset before he turned to the left and started to walk down the street. "Come on!"

The rain was blowing into Wolf's back, but his eye was free of water. It didn't matter much, however; the rainfall was so heavy he couldn't see ten feet in front of them.

Fox trudged through the water, unperturbed by the storm.

 _Damn if Fox isn't brave... or dumb as a box of rocks._

Wolf kept an eye out for any of those… things, but he saw nothing except the carcasses of vehicles littering the flooded roads. He couldn't hear anything except the howling of the wind and the pounding of the rain, either.

"How far now?" Wolf asked as they turned left at an intersection. He looked back and saw Bill and Krystal right at their heels.

"A few more blocks, I think!" Fox moved out of the way of a car that started to slide down the waterlogged road.

"Ugh, you think?" Wolf snorted and craned his neck to look at Fox who glanced back at him

"Can't see the building myself." Fox shrugged and looked back.

Wolf sighed as apprehension jumped through his chest and stomach. Dismal dread settled at the bottom of his gut with the weight of a boulder.

The more the group walked, the harder the rain seemed to fall. It was like some god was royally pissed at the four of them and was doing everything in his power to impede their progress. Wolf cursed that god out with every single foul word in his vocabulary.

Wolf found it unsettling that he didn't see any of the creatures roaming around. Maybe they didn't like rain? Or…

He shuddered. Not a good thought.

"I think we're here." Fox stopped in front of a set of large and unbroken glass doors.

"The entrance should be much bigger!" Wolf strained his eye to read the sign above the door. It read 'Help Center.'

"This is a side entrance!"

Fox walked to the glass doors and heaved one of them open. He stumbled into the building with standing water that rushed in with them. Bill and Krystal came in behind them before Fox slammed the door shut and locked it.

Wolf sighed before he looked around the help center. It wasn't a large room, and a few chairs and sofas were placed in a corner of the room. The help desk took up most of the room adjacent to the door. It was all lit only by a few emergency lights and… a single computer monitor.

Fox walked behind the desk and set Wolf in one of the chairs before looking at the computer. It was a laptop that an employee hadn't turned off.

"It's still connected to the database here!" Fox smiled and sat in another chair. He started tapping away at the computer.

Wolf used the counter to pull himself over next to Fox. Bill and Krystal hovered over Fox's shoulders as he worked. "Check the map, maybe we can find the ships," Bill suggested. Fox nodded.

Wolf watched with a widened eye as Fox's hands flew across the keyboard. The speed at which he typed was almost hypnotic, and Wolf couldn't tear his gaze away.

"Map shows where your landing pad is, Section 28-F." Fox scratched his chin. "Doesn't tell me if the ships are still there."

Wolf crossed his arms. "You have access to the whole database." He raised a brow.

Fox slapped a hand to his head. "Ah shit, right." He started back at the computer again.

Bill hummed. "Can't tell if the storm is getting worse or not, dude."

Wolf turned to look out the doors, where all he saw was the chaos and insanity of the hurricane. The rain shrouded everything outside in a cloak of shadows, making it impossible to make any shape out. The standing water was still about ankle high, which eased Wolf's nerves.

"It doesn't matter, it will be here a while." Krystal pushed her bangs out of her eyes and shifted around where she stood.

"I found ship logs!" Fox interjected as he grinned wide. "Gotta filter stuff out." He bit his lip and narrowed his eyes while he leaned in closer to the laptop.

Wolf's ears twitched. Something clattered to the floor.

Something was there. Wet thuds. Howl.

Wolf's heart stopped. He grasped for something to use as an anchor and found Fox's shoulder.

Bill drew his pistol. Another groan.

Labored breathing split the air. Fox continued typing, although his ears were perked.

Wolf felt his chest trying to rip itself to pieces. He pulled his pistol out and aimed it towards the hallway furthest from them.

More heavy footsteps. Another guttural groan.

"We need to run." Wolf's words were soft. "Those things, they're making us-"

Fox blinked. "I don't understand." He stared at the laptop screen.

"They release that chemical-"

"No, not that." Fox shook his head. "There's nothing on the logs for your ships, coming or going."

Wolf grimaced. "We have to take a look."

Fox nodded before he got up and moved to carry Wolf. Krystal picked up the laptop.

"Section 28-F," Wolf murmured, his gaze not leaving the hall where the creature lurked. "Go down there." He pointed to the opposite hall.

"That'll take us there?" Fox raised a brow, but he started to walk that direction.

"Better than the open main entrance." Wolf spared a glance behind them and saw the monster emerge from the void.

Krystal turned on a flashlight while they walked down the lifeless hall. Fox followed the signs for the landing pad while Wolf kept his ears pricked.

"What happens when we get off of Corneria, dude?" Bill cocked his head at Fox.

Fox grimaced as his ears pinned to his head. "I'll be having a chat with Pepper."

Bill nodded. "I… see."

The group fell into silence as they continued to turn down the corridors. They must have been in a set of maintenance tunnels, for there weren't any commercial places like shops and kiosks around the place.

Wolf scratched his mangled eye as they continued onwards. Apprehension was building in his gut and steadily expanding into his chest and lungs. He was being crushed by guilt and worry and fear, being suffocated from the inside out.

 _Let them be okay! Please, let them be alive._

"There's 28-F!" Fox pointed to a sign in front of them. Wolf breathed a sigh of relief.

The sign led them off of the main path and into a more cramped corridor where the inner workings of the building began to show. Pipes and circuitry ran alongside the group in place of walls, and the floor was sloping downward.

The corridor ended with a ladder that led up to a manhole about five meters above them. No light was filtering through, but Wolf could hear the howling wind from so far underground.

"Bill, take Wolf. I'm gonna go up." Fox moved over to Bill, but Wolf growled.

"I have to see what's up there." He shook his head and tightened his grip on Fox. "For myself."

Fox sighed.

Silence.

Wolf's heart hammered in his chest.

"Fine."

Wolf smiled. "Thank you."

Fox started to ascend the ladder with Wolf on his back. They barely had enough room to breathe in that claustrophobic tunnel. Wolf cursed his pudgy belly.

They came up to the manhole. "Ready?" Fox asked.

Wolf pulled the raincoat hood over his head. His heart was pounding. He nodded.

"Let's go."


	8. Death With Dignity

Suggested listening: Death With Dignity by Sufjan Stevens

* * *

 _We all hope for the storm to end_

 _And maybe it looks like it's about to_

 _You let your guard down_

 _And the gale worsens_

* * *

"No… oh DAMMIT!"

"Wolf, calm down!"

There was only his Wolfen on the landing platform.

He wasn't sure whether to exhale in relief or whimper.

"They're gone!" Wolf shouted over the storm. Rain bit into his skin.

"Yeah." Fox nodded. "I'm sorry."

Shock shot through his stomach. Wolf looked at the back of Fox's head with a widened eye.

"It's not-" Wolf gasped. His heart dropped all the way to his feet.

A massive shadow emerged from the rain and loomed over the spaceport. It was dripping oil.

"It can't be..." Fox's voice was barely audible over the wind.

It was.

A hulking amalgamation.

Staring down at the unfortunate duo.

Fox started to descend the ladder. He covered up the manhole with shaking hands before going all the way down to Krystal and Bill.

"Well?" Krystal asked. "Are they up there?"

Wolf shivered and shut his eye. "No. Ships are gone."

Fox's ears fell. "But there's something else." His voice was shaking just as much as his hands. Wolf's heart was still hammering in his chest.

"What was it, dude?" Bill raised a brow. His hands were stuffed into his pants pockets.

Fox shook his head. "Krystal, can you feel anything?" He crossed his arms and bit his lip.

She closed her eyes and furrowed her brows. Wolf watched her with bated breath as she reached a hand out to nothing.

Krystal's eyes snapped open and she staggered back into the wall. She shuddered.

"It's screaming. There's rage, hatred, fear…" Krystal set a hand on her head. "Hunger."

"They're getting bigger." Wolf's tail dropped between his legs.

"We need to go home." Fox started to walk back the way they came from. "It's half a kilometer to our ships."

Wolf swallowed. "Are they still there?" His grip tightened around Fox.

"Guess we'll find out." Fox looked back at him and shrugged. "Let's go."

The group started back down the maintenance shaft in silence. Wolf was terrified to be alone with his thoughts, but there was nothing to talk about anymore. Everyone had the same thing on their minds.

What could have caused this?

Wolf fell limp against Fox's back. Fox grunted but didn't say anything as he readjusted his weight. Wolf still looked at him in awe.

Why don't you hate me? How don't you want me dead? I'm a monster.

The exposed piping turned back into blank walls as the group trudged through the eerie building. Wolf twitched and strained his ears and heard nothing but their own freight train footsteps echo throughout the damp ruin.

Each step reverberated through Wolf's skull and freed thoughts and memories from their cages.

He saw Panther laughing and talking to him as they sat on the bed. Felt Panther's hand on his shoulder when he gave advice.

He saw Leon painting a cubist portrait of the city while explaining his steps and methods. Smelled the paint in the air and sighed.

He saw the three of them drinking together on a couch and laughing. So happy and free to live their lives.

It all vanished into the fog before his eye.

His family was missing.

Wolf cleared his throat and wiped at his wet eye before straightening himself back out. He needed to move.

"Dude, stop!" Bill hissed, dispelling the fog on Wolf's mind.

"What?" Fox turned around to face Bill.

"Look over there." Bill pointed down a darkened hallway to their left. Wolf grimaced and bit his lip.

A monster was crouched down in the center of the hallway, and it was convulsing violently. Water dripped from the ceiling and onto the floor all around the place.

It screamed and grew bigger, expelling globs of that oily film all over the hall. It had to be at least twice as tall as before.

It turned around and cocked its grotesque head at them.

Its mouth opened and a gas expanded from it.

"Run!" Fox started to sprint down the hall towards the exit.

Wolf heard another screech from behind them along with heavy footsteps. His heart stopped and chest exploded with fear while his hands tightened around Fox's shoulders.

"It's not as fast as us!" Krystal exclaimed. Wolf sighed, but his grip didn't relax.

Somehow Fox managed to make it back to the lobby they had come from. That monster from before was nowhere to be found, but there was that residue splattered all around the place.

The rain outside didn't look like it was coming down as hard. Wolf put his hood up before Fox left the building and back out into the storm.

The water was threatening to come up to their knees. Fox started to trudge through it in the general direction of their landing site.

Wolf looked back towards the spaceport, but he couldn't see anything. The rain was far too thick, and the sky was darkening much more than before.

Still, he kept his ears perked.

Nothing could be heard except the rain and wind. It seemed to be drowning the lifeless city and trying to make something new. Wolf wasn't sure that the capital might ever recover.

But what about the rest of the planet?

"Do you think there's anyone left here?" Bill came up next to Fox.

"Not sure." Fox's ears drooped under his hood. His voice held hope, but Wolf did not feel it.

"I can't feel anything around us." Krystal's voice was soft, her brows scrunched together.

"The population is too big not to be." Wolf chewed on his lip and looked around the flooded street. Storefronts were empty and the glass was broken. He heard nothing except the rain.

"Then it was…" Fox gasped. He looked back at Wolf, and he saw dread in Fox's wide eyes.

Wolf nodded. "It had to have been."

Fox turned back around. "We were lucky to save who we could." His voice was small and fearful. Wolf could feel him shaking.

Nobody spoke. They just continued to make a slow path to the parking garage. There was nothing to speak of.

Wolf wished he could walk. He cursed himself for being so weak.

But at the same time, it was getting way too easy to drop his guard around Fox and the others. He shuddered at the thought.

"A few more blocks left." Fox's voice cut through the wind. "Keep your guard up."

The rain had let up a bit, but Wolf still couldn't see far ahead of them. He decided to watch the rear instead.

Oh, how he was glad he did.

A god was cleaving the sky in two.

Its arm hit a building and chunks of concrete fell to the ground. A scream pierced the veil of rain and sent an arrow of dread straight into Wolf's heart.

"Holy shit." Bill's looked at the beast as his jaw fell slack.

Wolf wasn't sure if it had seen them or not.

Fox picked up the pace and started to run as best he could through the water. Wolf looked down at the gun holstered at his belt and reached for it.

The monster roared again.

He wrapped his arm back around Fox.

Wolf wasn't sure how long they had been running, but the next thing he knew, Fox was running into a carpark. Wolf sighed but didn't loosen his grip on Fox as he sprinted to the stairwell.

"That thing has to be as big as a skyscraper!" Bill's voice behind them was tired and hoarse.

"Such... Hunger." Krystal was quiet. Wolf swallowed and shut his eye, but all he could see was Panther.

Was the next scream closer to them? Or was it further away?

Wolf felt his soul waver and shake, and he wanted to cry.

"Made it." Fox exited the stairwell, and sure enough, the Arwings were in the same spot they had left them.

Wolf finally relaxed. Fox snaked around a few cars until they came to the ships. Wolf was set down on the wing of Fox's ship, and he took his raincoat off and handed it to Fox.

Krystal and Fox shoved everything back into the storage compartments. Bill climbed into an Arwing with Krystal following behind.

Fox picked Wolf up with a gentle grip and set him in the back seat of the Arwing where his leather coat was resting.

He wrapped himself in the coat while Fox shut the cockpit and started to turn the Arwing on.

"When we reach orbit I should have radio signal," Fox stated as he handed Wolf a headset. Wolf nodded and put it on.

The Arwings lifted off of the ground, and Fox eased his out of the opening they had entered from. Wolf didn't see the creature in front of them; he sunk into the chair and held his coat tighter.

 _Come on Wolf, man up. Quit showing weakness!_

Wolf took a deep breath and straightened himself in his seat before putting his headset on. Fox angled the Arwing towards the sky and took off, leaving the flooded and desecrated city far behind to wither and rot.

"Wolf?" Fox's voice was quiet.

"What?" Wolf cocked his head.

"I'm… sorry we couldn't find your team." Fox slumped down in his chair. Wolf blinked as his breath caught and twisted painfully in his chest.

"I'm just glad they're not down there." Wolf shuddered.

"Who could've done that?" Fox shook his head.

Wolf didn't have the answer.

They flew up into the hurricane and through the violent clouds. Fox had to turn the G-Diffusers up, but neither ship had any problem getting through the storm.

A moment later the two ships burst out of this cloud cover and into the upper atmosphere. The night sky beckoned them ever closer back to the void of space and to the asteroid belt of Meteo.

"Dude, radio signal is back up." Bill's voice crackled to life in Wolf's ear.

"Copy that." Fox pressed a few buttons on the Arwing console. "Great Fox, this is Fox reporting back from our mission. Do you copy?"

"Fox? Oh, thank goodness!" Peppy exclaimed. He sounded frazzled.

"What's been going on?" The Arwing sped up to prep for the atmospheric breakthrough.

"Oh nothing much, just trying to deal with a few squadrons of Cornerian fighters." Wolf thought he heard a boom in the background while Peppy spoke.

"Shit!" Flames started to lick the hull of the ship. Fox cranked the G-Diffusers to full and the rumbling stopped.

"The ceasefire ended five hours ago." Peppy let out a drawn-out sigh. "Falco, Slippy, and Katt are taking care of them."

"Are you doing okay?" Fox's voice leveled out and Wolf took a breath to dispel the uneasiness in his chest.

"Yeah. Great Fox's shields are still running at full." Wolf heard Fox sigh.

"We'll get there as soon as we can, man!" Bill exclaimed.

The world outside of the glass stopped burning and Fox switched the G-Diffusers off. The darkened asteroids of Meteo loomed large in front of them like some beast waiting to pounce on an unfortunate soul.

"What did you guys see down there?" Peppy's voice was cheerful, but it fell on deaf ears. Wolf shrunk further into his seat.

"We'll tell you when we get home." Fox's response was quick; he had a pained look on his face.

Silence on the comms. Wolf heard another muffled explosion in the background.

"I'll see you four soon." He sounded worried.

"Understood. Fox out."

The Arwings entered the asteroid belt and started to maneuver around the drifting giants. Fox then inputted the coordinates for the Great Fox into the console.

Wolf shifted around in his seat to put his duster on. He looked down at his legs when he finished and sighed.

"Talk to Slippy about that when we get back," Fox murmured, startling Wolf.

"He can help?" Wolf felt a tiny spark of hope ignite in his chest.

"As best he can." Fox shrugged. "We'll… we'll help you figure this out." He gave Wolf a thumbs up.

Wolf looked at Fox's hand and blinked. "But you hate me. I'm a damn murderer- a monster," he blurted.

Fox was silent for a moment.

Wolf sighed. _He agrees with me… he hates me._

"Did you kill my father?"

The words were daggers cutting into Wolf's chest. He felt breathless.

"Did you murder him?" Fox's voice was eerily calm.

"I-"

"We're almost out of Meteo!" Bill's voice echoed on the radio. Wolf closed his mouth and watched as Fox flew around a large asteroid and came out into open space.

The behemoths that made up Pepper's fleet were in the same place they had been before, stone watchtowers never breaking their positions.

"Kill the power now!" Fox turned the Arwing off and it began to drift dead through space. Wolf looked over to see that Bill had done the same.

Only the dull reflection of the behemoths in the sky shone down on them. Darkness closed on all sides and suffocated everything.

"Why the hell aren't we rushing to help?" Wolf whispered as if the blockade could hear them.

"No point in attracting more of them." Fox picked at his claws. Wolf's heart started beating faster.

"But this doesn't feel right!" Wolf crossed his arms and huffed.

"I'd rather not get _us_ killed." Fox had a tiny smile on his face.

Wolf said nothing, instead gazing out of the window. He didn't see any patrols or ships besides the dreadnoughts themselves, nor could he see the Great Fox.

It was all so dark… so empty.

Beautiful and utterly haunting.

"How far away are we?" Wolf ran a hand through his head fur as his ears twitched.

"Can't tell. Navigation is down too." Fox crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. Wolf felt his shoulders relax a bit as some tension faded from his stomach.

Minutes ticked by in the dark at a snail's pace. Wolf distracted himself by counting the stars in the sky and finding constellations.

In the stars he saw a constellation of Panther's face. It gazed down at Wolf with narrowed eyes and a sigh.

 _Why torture me?_

Panther's constellation was swallowed up by a monster made of starlight.

Wolf looked away and clutched at his head. He felt his chest tightening and heartstrings snapping apart.

 _Please forgive me, you guys. I'm sorry for being so weak… I'll become strong. I can show them I'm not the pushover I was before._

Wolf growled and shook his head.

 _I'm not a weakling, dammit! I'm Wolf O'Donnell!_

"We will be out of scanning range in one minute," Fox whispered. He was looking at something on his headset eyepiece as he spoke.

The ships were all behind them now.

Wolf watched with bated breath as Fox started to mouth the countdown.

Fox mouthed, "Thirty-seven, thirty-six…"

Wolf felt his heart start to claw its way up to his neck. He tapped his claws along the side of the ship.

Air was getting shorter.

"Thirty, twenty-nine…"

 _Damn, broke another one._

Wolf sighed and looked over the rest of his claws. They were all still intact, but he would need a serious manicure.

It was easier with Panther to help.

"Eighteen, seventeen…"

Wolf wondered what else was happening in the Lylat System. Surely the other worlds were going into a panic after what happened with Corneria?

Wolf crossed his arms.

 _Pepper…_

"Ten, nine, eight…"

The Great Fox had to be okay. Falco and the others could take care of themselves. It would be fine.

Right?

"Three, two, one…"

Moment of reckoning.

"Out of range!" Fox hit a button and the Arwing lit up in a flash of whites and blues.

"Back online! Bill, Krystal, do you copy?" Fox had a glint in his eyes that Wolf found unsettling. It was so unlike how he was on the ground.

"We copy, Fox!" Krystal replied.

Fox nodded. "Good. The Great Fox is just up ahead. Get ready." Sure enough, when Wolf looked over Fox's shoulder, he could see the ship as a small form in between the stars. Tiny explosions appeared every so often.

Wolf steeled his nerves. Adrenaline rushed through his veins and he found himself grinning.

He could see what Fox was made of without being on the receiving end of his fury this time.

* * *

A/N: Hey, so I've noticed that nobody has really given any feedback lately. Not just for my stories either; I'm talking about not many people giving feedback to ANY stories in the Star Fox community. We should be trying to leave reviews and likes and follows so us creators don't get discouraged.

Trust me, we love your feedback, and we crave it. If you just take a moment to say you liked someone's work, you could make their entire day! So please, leave reviews, be they criticism or just positivity! We all feel good, not just us writers, but commenters too when you leave a like or review! Please, give us feedback, it doesn't take long!


	9. Oblivius

Suggested listening: Oblivius by The Strokes

* * *

What mercy could one ask for  
After being backed into a corner  
All you do is turn a wild animal  
Into something far worse

* * *

"Contact!"

Explosions rocked the Arwing. It lurched and turned and fired with a weight that made Wolf smile.

 _Fox is pretty good, isn't he?_

Fox's face was frozen in a look of concentration and silent anger. Wolf blinked, taken aback by the fierce look on his face.

 _He looked so skittish on the ground, but up here…_

Falco's voice rang over comms. "Foxy! It's so good to see you!" His face appeared as a cocky grin on Wolf's eyepiece.

"Sorry we're so late, over." Fox didn't break his rhythm as he spoke. He shot down Cornerian fighters with precision and efficiency that startled Wolf.

 _Like me in my glory days. Maybe I shouldn't have retired so early?_

"Explain later, fight now." Falco's face disappeared and Fox snorted.

"What a birdbrain, huh?" Fox rolled his eyes. Wolf found a small grin on his face.

"Y- yeah." Fox did a U-turn and shot a bomb at a cluster of fighters. They all went up in a ball of plasma and antimatter, vaporized instantly.

"Peppy, how long will it take to plot a course out of here? Over." Fox asked.

"ROB can get it done in a few minutes, but these dang fighters are screwing up his sensors!"

Fox was silent for a moment as he started to avoid fire from another group of ships. They whizzed by the Arwing and shot up behind them.

"Alright boys, let's take care of the rest of these Cornerians! Over!"

Wolf bit his lip. "Fox, aren't you worried about casualties?"

"The guys are just drones." Fox spared a glance back at Wolf. "Since when did you care about the Cornerians?"

"Never have, never will." Wolf shrugged. "But I know you do."

"I've got no intention of hesitating for the real thing either." There was a glint in Fox's eye that unnerved Wolf.

 _Is this the same Fox as before?_ A shiver ran through Wolf's body.

Fox took out more fighters than Wolf could count without taking a lick of damage. He dropped another smart bomb on a group pursuing another Arwing, and they all vaporized without a sound.

"Thanks, dude! They almost had us." Wolf heard Bill sigh in relief.

"Watch yourself out there," Wolf replied with a smile.

Fox kept a steady beat of destroying ships and occasionally getting some off of his team's back, and sure enough, the enemy numbers dropped.

Peppy's face appeared in the eyepiece. "ROB is able to calculate a jump. Where are we headed?"

"Doesn't matter, just not here! Over!" Fox growled as a plasma bolt grazed the starboard wing. He hit the brakes and turned, firing in an arc until the offending ship was destroyed.

"ROB is looking at the abandoned Bolse Station; Jump takes ten hours!"

"Fox, I've got more incoming hostiles!" Slippy exclaimed. Wolf gripped his seat harder while he swallowed.

"Everyone retreat to the Great Fox and prepare for a subspace jump!"

Fox banked a hard right and boosted towards the Great Fox hangar entrance. He slowed the Arwing as he set it down on one of the electromagnetic launchers.

A moment later, four other Arwings flew into the hangar and set down. Wolf exhaled and slumped back into his seat.

He was safe.

"Everyone is accounted for, start the jump." Fox's voice was drained and quiet once more. He looked tired as he opened the cockpit.

Wolf tried to get up, but his legs still refused to work. "Fox?"

"Oh, right." Fox turned around and lifted Wolf up. Once he was situated around Fox's shoulders, Fox climbed down the Arwing and hit the metal floor with a clank.

"Hell of a day." Wolf sighed, wishing he had a beer bottle or two with him.

"Yeah."

"You guys are okay!" Wolf turned to see Slippy running towards them with a grin, a neutral Falco and Katt behind him.

"Alive, at least." Fox closed his eyes and scrunched his brows together.

"What happened to Wolf?" Slippy matched Fox's pace as they walked, his eyes scanning over Wolf.

Flashes of those monsters haunted his mind. He tried to think of anything else, but those unnatural things lurked at every corner, every thought.

"We… don't know." Fox glanced back at Wolf with a pain in his eyes. "He passed out, and when he woke up he couldn't move his legs."

 _Why does Fox sound so concerned? Why doesn't he hate me?_

Slippy hummed and rubbed his chin. "Take him to the medbay for me please."

Fox stepped into the elevator, and everyone else crammed in beside him. Bill pressed the button for the second level, and the doors closed.

Wolf stared at the back of Krystal's head as thoughts formed in his mind. Was she reading everybody's thoughts? Prying into their darkest secrets without a care in the world?

A flash of anger shot through him. Sure, she apologized to him, but was it really genuine?

"Why are you guys so quiet?" Falco asked, his sharp tone slicing through the cloud of silence as he looked at Fox with crossed arms. "What happened?"

Fox replied with words that shook the small space. "We failed."

"You did?" Falco's voice went quiet as his arms dropped to his sides.

"No gains, dude. Nothing but hell down there." Bill looked to the floor. Wolf felt a weight settle in his gut as even Bill's attitude splintered.

The doors opened, and Slippy, Fox, and Bill exited. The others stayed in the elevator and continued upwards towards the bridge.

They walked down the halls to the medbay, where Fox set Wolf on a bed before sitting down on another next to it. Bill leaned on the wall with his hands shoved into his coat pockets.

"So you can't move your legs at all?" Slippy stood next to the bed with his hands on his hips.

Wolf shook his legs. "Can't even feel the damn things and I don't know why." The panic from before started to set back in. He took a few deep breaths and closed his eye.

"How did you pass out?"

Wolf scratched his head. "I had heard one of those things make a noise… and it all kinda hit me. I fell."

Slippy frowned at the mention of the monsters. "Remember anything else?"

"I had some weird dreams… and then I woke up and I couldn't move them." Wolf fell on the bed with a huff. He covered his head with his hands.

"Fox, what are these 'things?'" Slippy crossed his arms and looked at Fox.

Both Bill and Fox shuddered. "They were whatever caused the chaos on Corneria." He hugged himself. "Weird misshapen things made of this black oily stuff."

"Jeez, that's super creepy." Slippy rubbed his chin again. "Did you have any experiences with them, Wolf?"

"They took my team away. They almost killed me." Wolf's voice was barely above a whisper.

"That's horrible!" Slippy paced the length of the medbay for a minute with a sad look in his eyes.

"Now how could that correlate to- oh! I've got it!" He snapped his fingers before walking back to Wolf's side.

"What? What is it?" Wolf felt anticipation bubble in his chest.

"Your injury is probably psychosomatic."

Wolf blinked. "Psycho-what?"

"Psychosomatic. It's like your mind fabricating an injury that isn't real."

"Still not following." Wolf crossed his arms and cocked his head.

Slippy sighed. "There's something in your mind that's blocking you from using your legs. It must have happened when you passed out."

Something in Wolf collapsed. "Oh," he muttered as he stared down at his hands.

 _This happened because I'm weak._

Fox stood up and set his hand on Wolf's shoulder. "How can he treat it?"

"Find what the mental problem is, and work through it. I'm not a therapist, so I can't help with that. I'm really sorry."

Fox pressed a hand to his temple. "Do we have a wheelchair, at least?"

Slippy nodded. "One sec," he said before walking off to another section of the medbay.

Wolf looked at his weak, useless legs. He didn't know what to think anymore. Nothing was right, his reality was just… gone.

"Dude, it's gonna be alright." Bill smiled at Wolf and gave him a thumbs up. That smile was still shaky, and it didn't quite reach his eyes this time.

"How? I don't even know why this happened." Wolf balled his hands into fists.

"We can all figure this out. Together." Fox patted his back, an unreadable expression on his face.

 _I just can't figure you out, Fox McCloud._

"Got one!" Slippy came over with a wheelchair and handed them to Wolf.

Wolf swung his legs to dangle off the bed, but he caught Slippy staring at his metal boots. "What?"

"What's that black stuff on them?" Slippy crouched down and looked over the sole of the boot.

"I don't… oh. I think it's residue from those monsters." Wolf leaned down to look at the sticky substance smattered on his boots.

Slippy walked over to a row of cabinets and pulled out a flask and knife. He came back and crouched before scraping away at the goop. Little chunks of it fell into the flask as he collected the substance.

"I'll run some tests and see what this stuff is." Slippy used a rubber stopper to close the flask with the knife inside it.

Fox helped Wolf maneuver into the wheelchair, where he sat with a grunt. How humiliating!

"You can do that after the debriefing. Come on." Fox started walking out of the medbay while Bill wheeled Wolf, who grumbled but didn't protest.

They walked down the hall and got in the elevator. A moment later, they arrived at the bridge and walked out of the lift into it, where everyone else was already waiting. The view out of the window was of the stars blurring into lines that streaked across the glass.

All eyes locked on him for a moment before focusing on Fox.

"Fox!" Peppy exclaimed, a relieved look on his face. "What happened down there?"

Fox grimaced and shoved his hands into his pockets. He walked up to the front of the bridge and turned around to face everyone.

Fox cleared his throat and raised his chin. "We went down to the surface to search for what caused this crisis, and perhaps find Wolf's missing team. What we found instead was a collapsed city, two missing armies, and hordes of monsters."

 _He's got a solid speaking voice._ Wolf nodded in approval. _Gotta admit he's a good leader._

"Pepper and the Cornerian Army are against us and we have no idea what these things are or where Wolf's team is." Fox looked over everyone in the bridge. "But we _cannot_ give up. We have to save this planet, and we will find those answers. We will find Wolf's team." Fox stared at Wolf as he finished his speech.

"But how are we gonna do this?" Falco asked, his arms crossed.

"Slippy can start work on analyzing the monsters." Fox looked at Slippy, who nodded.

"And us?" Katt asked.

"Get some rest." Fox yawned and rubbed his eyes as he spoke. "Get ready for the next fight."

Wolf hummed at those words. He didn't feel the slightest bit tired; if anything, he was more alert than usual. Ideas popped into his head as to what he could do to pass the time.

Krystal cleared her throat. "What happens after we get to Bolse?"

"I'm still working on it, and I'll get back to you all later." Fox sat in the captain's chair with a sigh. "That's it. You're all dismissed."

Wolf rolled next to Bill as thoughts of the dogfight against the Cornerians replayed itself in his head. "Hey, we're low on fighter capacity, aren't we?"

Bill nodded. "Yeah, how come?"

"Bolse has a few prototype ships from the Lylat Wars that we could use if they're still around."

"Course you'd know that." Bill grinned and punched him on the shoulder.

"You think they would help?" Wolf crossed his arms and looked up at Bill.

Bill gave him a thumbs up. "We need as much power as we can get, dude!"

"Sounds good."

"You should tell Fox about it!"

Wolf nodded before turning towards the captain's seat where Fox was rubbing his eyes. He rolled towards it and stopped in front of the chair.

"Fox, I've got an idea." Wolf tapped Fox's shoulder as he spoke.

Fox looked over at him with a raised eyebrow. "What's that?"

"I know how we can get extra firepower."

"How's that?"

"There should be some prototype Wolfens at Bolse. We can snag em when we get there and repair them!"

Fox crossed his arms and frowned. "How do you know about that?"

"I worked with the Venomians, remember?" Wolf scratched the back of his head and looked away.

"Right…"

"Uh, is that alright? Bill and I both wanna do it." Can't stop saying stupid shit can you Wolf?

"Sure, yeah." Fox yawned again and Wolf frowned.

"Get some rest, Fox. You need it more than me."

Fox nodded and got up before he started walking out of the bridge. Wolf shook his head.

Poor bastard is gonna work himself to death.

Wolf turned around to stare at the stars as they flashed by outside the window. Everything morphed into a chaotic sea of white and blue, which made Wolf relax. He stretched his arms out and rested them behind his head.

In the sea of tranquility, storm clouds started to form. Flashes of lightning shot through Wolf's mind, and thunder reverberated through his skull.

The thunder of his unanswered questions. Where were Panther and Leon? Why haven't they contacted him? Why was Fox showing him kindness?

Why was he so useless?

He wrapped the leather coat around him and sighed into it.

 _You're better than this. You don't need their help with every little thing. You'll get over this stupid block!_

The stars felt painful to look at. He turned around and started wheeling out of the bridge. Down the quiet elevator and back into the lifeless halls where he stopped in front of the door to his room.

Escape from reality.

"Wolf."

He turned around to see Krystal walk up to him, her hair tied up in a messy ponytail. There were bags under her eyes as well.

"Yeah?" Wolf crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

She stopped in front of him and shoved her hands into the pockets of her coat. "I'm terribly sorry about everything." She closed her eyes and sighed.

"I won't make excuses, what I did was wrong. I didn't trust you and I thought you were out to get Fox and-"

Wolf held up a hand, and Krystal went silent. "Promise not to look in my mind anymore?"

Krystal nodded. "I promise."

"Then we're good." Wolf smiled and reached his hand out. Krystal shook it with a smile of her own.

"You should try to get to know everyone, by the way. You'll probably be here a while," Krystal remarked after they let go.

"Why would you want to talk to me?" Wolf snorted.

"You want to prove you can be trusted somehow, right?"

"Yeah, I suppose."

"Then you're gonna have to be the one to talk to them." She gave him a thumbs up as she walked away.

Wolf sighed. _Easy for you to say._

He entered his room and rolled over to the bed. He hummed as he looked his situation over.

 _Just push yourself up there, Wolf. This isn't hard._

He set his hands on the bed and gripped the blankets as he slowly lifted himself out of the wheelchair and into the bed.

Somehow he made it up without falling. He took his boots and coat off and set them on the wheelchair before scrambling awkwardly into the covers.

Before he lay down, he took his PDA from his pocket and set an alarm for six hours ahead. Satisfied, he tossed it onto the nightstand.

He then reached to take his eyepatch off but felt only mangled flesh.

 _Right. It's gone._

Wolf sighed again before he rolled onto his side and shut his eye. Drowsiness overcame him and soon he fell asleep.


	10. Half Light II(No Celebration)

Suggested listening: Half Light II(No Celebration) by Arcade Fire

* * *

The truth weighs down on you  
An ant crushed by the weight of a star  
And no matter how much you try to stay true  
The horrors come back, no matter how far

* * *

A shrill beeping sound threw Wolf from a dreamless slumber. He shot up with a gasp as his heart pounded in his chest.

 _Oh, right._

Wolf leaned over and turned the alarm off. He rubbed his eye as he moved to the side of the bed. His head felt much clearer than it had before he went to bed, but he still felt heavy and weighted to the ground.

Nothing felt good anymore. It was all so painful and hard to take.

He shook his head and set his feet on the ground to stand. The ground came at his face and he yelped as his snout collided with the floor.

"Ah, shit!" Pain erupted all over as he held his snout.

 _Forgot. Legs are trashed._

He sighed as a flash of anger ran through his head. He looked down at his legs and cursed at them in a manner of different ways.

After his small fit, Wolf grabbed the wheelchair and hoisted himself up in it. He put his boots and coat on and grabbed his PDA before leaving his room.

As he wheeled down the halls, he felt his stomach grumble and constrict. When was the last time he had a proper meal? Time felt both infinitely slow and like a blur since he'd first set foot on the Great Fox.

He took the elevator to the third floor and came out in the colorful recreational deck. Nobody else was there, Wolf noticed as he went to the kitchen and started looking through the fridge for food.

He smiled in triumph as his hand closed around a box of waffles in the freezer. He grabbed two and stuck them in a toaster on the nearby counter.

The whoosh of the elevator doors caught Wolf's ears. He turned around to look at the new people.

"-but you could keep practicing too, " Falco stated.

"I got you. I'll keep an eye out for- oh, hey dude!" Bill waved at Wolf, who raised his hand a little in return.

Falco scowled. "We can continue this later." He walked back in the lift and cross his arms.

"Wait, Falco!" Bill reached out a hand, but the door had already shut.

Wolf felt a sharp pain in his chest at the look on Falco's face. His ears drooped and he stared at the floor.

"Oh man, I'm sorry about that." Bill walked over and set a hand on Wolf's shoulder.

Wolf growled and clenched his fists. "Why does that bird have to be such an asshole?"

"He doesn't trust you yet." Bill leaned on the counter while Wolf moved back to the toaster. The waffles had popped up, and he put them on a plate before taking a bite out of one.

"Will he ever?"

Bill sighed. "That's a great question, dude." He raised an eyebrow as Wolf munched on his waffle. "You eat those plain?"

"Sure do. Got a problem with it?" Wolf grinned and took another bite.

"No, that's just… weird." Bill shook his head.

"I think butter on them is weird."

Bill laughed. "You're a strange guy, Wolf O'Donnell."

"Says the one who uses _'dude'_ every other sentence." Wolf snickered as Bill pushed his shoulder.

Wolf ate the rest of his waffles in silence while Bill stood beside him. His stomach felt a lot better, but he knew he would need a good source of protein soon or he'd suffer the consequences.

"We'll be at Bolse in a few hours," Bill murmured, breaking the silence.

"I'll come with you guys to help." Wolf threw his plate away and started to leave the recreational deck.

"Are you sure that's such a good-"

"I can handle myself!" Wolf snapped.

"Oh, sorry Wolf." Bill scratched the back of his head.

Wolf sighed and shook his head. "No, I'm sorry. Didn't mean to snap at you."

They entered the elevator. "I'm just concerned, that's all. We all are, even Fox."

Wolf scoffed. "Yeah. Sure they are."

"You know they care about you at least a little!"

 _That's what I'm scared about._

The elevator dinged and dropped them at the hangar bay. Wolf could hear the sounds of metal clanging on metal, blowtorches, chains, and the work of a tired group of mercenaries. It stirred emotions in him that he couldn't quite place.

He itched to get out of his wheelchair and grab a wrench.

Wolf saw Fox up on his Arwing looking at an open circuit panel on the side of its body, some wires in his hands. His jacket was tied around his waist, and he had oil and grime all over his tank top and fur.

"How long has he been at it?" Wolf cocked his head.

"A few hours. He woke up and went right to it."

Wolf shook his head. _Why does Fox insist on working himself to death like this?_

Bill walked over to Fox's Arwing and looked up at him. "Hey, Wolf's awake!"

Fox set the wiring down and descended the side of his Arwing to stand in front of Wolf. "Hey."

Wolf scratched at his cheek. "Hi."

"We'll be at Bolse soon."

"And you want to know how to get in and out, right?" Wolf crossed his arms. _Straight to the point, as per usual. Selfish jerk._

"I just wanted to make sure you were doing okay first." Fox's eyes held that concern that shocked Wolf to his core.

"I… uh." Wolf cleared his throat. "Yeah, I'm good enough." He calmed down and looked back up at Fox.

"You good enough to come to Bolse with us?"

"I should be asking you that question."

Fox waved him off. "I got enough sleep."

Bill rolled his eyes. "Three hours isn't enough sleep, dummy!"

"Too late now." Fox climbed back up on his Arwing and started working away at the circuit boards again. "So how do we get into Bolse?"

"Depends on if there's still power. If not, we can go right in, but if there is, I've got clearance codes." Wolf tool his PDA from his pocket and showed them it.

"And where are these prototypes?"

Wolf stroked his chin and hummed. "Hangar for all the experimental stuff. I can't remember exactly where that is, but there should be maps of the station onboard."

"Awesome." Fox turned around and shook his head.

"Hey, you're lucky we even get to do this!"

"I just hope it doesn't go wrong. For everyone's sake." Fox looked back down at Wolf and shook his head. Including mine?

"You two gotta lighten up!" Bill crossed his arms. "We aren't gonna improve if you two act like this!"

Wolf felt his face heat up. "Sorry, Bill."

"Yeah, I'm sorry." Fox looked just as embarrassed as he did.

 _Are you gonna make up your mind on how to feel about me?_

"Who's going on this trip?" Wolf cocked his head at Bill.

"Me, you, Fox, and Falco. Someone's gotta pilot those out of there."

Wolf grimaced. _Why did it have to be that bird? It's gonna be so hard to get Falco to trust me._

"Alrighty then," Wolf replied as his ears drooped.

"How long until we're at Bolse?" Bill looked up at Fox.

"About two hours."

Bill nodded. "You can go do whatever until we get there. I've gotta check up on Slippy, so I'll see ya later!" He waved at Wolf as he left the hangar.

Wolf turned to say something to Fox, but he was so engrossed in repairs Wolf decided not to say anything. Instead, he wheeled off to strike up a conversation with somebody else.

Wolf saw Falco leaning against his Arwing, but he decided not to go over there. Falco was wearing a deep scowl that sent Wolf a pretty clear message. He kept moving past the Arwing.

"Wolf."

Wolf stopped with a start, his heart pounding. He relaxed when he was Peppy waving at him from his Arwing. Wolf sighed and rolled over to Peppy, who was crouched by its landing gear.

"What is it?"

"Just wanted to check on you. You doing okay?" Peppy was smiling kindly at him. It had a calming effect better than even what Bill could do.

"Could be better, I guess." Wolf looked down at his useless legs and frowned. Could be a lot better.

"I'm sure we can figure this out."

Wolf snorted. "Seems like everyone's out to get me rather than help."

Peppy set a wrench down on the floor and wiped his hands with a rag hanging on a nearby toolbox. "Just give it time."

"Why can't people just trust me?" Wolf crossed his arms and slouched in his wheelchair.

"You've done a lot of bad stuff, to be fair."

"Oh, so people aren't allowed to change?" Wolf felt his hackles raise.

"I didn't say that." Peppy set a hand on Wolf's shoulder. "The first thing anyone sees in someone is something bad. You've gotta work for that forgiveness."

Wolf blinked. _Why does the old man have to give such great advice?_

 _Even so, you don't deserve that forgiveness._

 _Why not? You want to be good._

 _Monster. That's all you'll ever be._

Wolf growled and shook his head. Peppy raised an eyebrow but made no comment on it.

"If you say so."

"I've seen it plenty of times, even in James." Peppy's eyes grew distant and sad.

"Surely James wasn't that bad." Wolf rolled his eye and shook his head.

"He was a mercenary. We've all done what we had to so we could survive, even him."

Peppy's words struck bullets into him, but they weren't the first to have that effect. Wolf took a breath.

"For mercenaries, you've sure done a ton of good, right?" Wolf's voice was small. He felt trapped in a corner of his own making, having to claw his way to freedom.

Peppy shook his head. "Killing hundreds of Venomian soldiers is a good thing? Ending so many lives? Families?" The pain was all over Peppy's face and voice knocked the breath from Wolf.

 _I… shit. To think Fox has seen just as much as me?_

"Not something that crosses your mind often." Peppy picked up his coat from a nearby stool and put it on. "Should've seen Fox's face when he realized that." Another flash of pain across Peppy's face.

"I'm sorry I brought this up." Wolf shook his head and frowned.

"No, it's alright, really." Peppy smiled at Wolf. He motioned for Wolf to walk with him, so he rolled to match Peppy's pace.

Peppy continued. "I'm not sure Fox realized how much damage he'd truly done on his personal war back then… but it isn't my place to talk." Peppy sighed and looked at the ceiling. "Ask him if you wanna know."

Wolf blinked. _Did Fox really not know about what he was doing? That's quite a thought._

"We'll see."

Wolf bit his lip and looked up at Fox as they passed his Arwing. He was still on top of his Arwing, but this time he was curled into a ball and staring at the sealed hangar door. He looked much older than he was.

"Why don't we see how Slippy is doing at the lab?"

Wolf nodded. "I doubt he's had any sleep." Wonder what he's found from my boots.

They took the elevator to the third floor and went through the recreation deck to a hallway that extended out from behind it. The blank hall led Wolf and Peppy to an open doorway that they stepped through.

The laboratory was a modest size, about twice as big as Wolf's room, but it was a huge mess. Wolf almost knocked into a stack of boxes as he entered, and a few tools nearly met his face as he caught his balance.

Slippy was working in the one clean space in the entire room, a single table in the center of a sea of chaos. A laptop and some other scientific-looking tools were around him. Bill was hovering over Slippy with a frown on his face.

 _Not good._

"What's going on, guys?" Peppy stood behind Slippy and crossed his arms.

"Something bad I think." Slippy's hands were flying across the keyboard as he was typing something into a program.

"Have you figured out what that stuff is?" Wolf looked to the flask containing the black substance.

"Yeah, it's uh…" Slippy rubbed his chin. "It's made of carbon and calcium and the other stuff that we're made of, right?"

Wolf nodded. "Building blocks of life, right?"

"Yeah, but there's something else too." Slippy stopped typing and turned around to face them. "Remember the Lylat Wars? How Andross had tons of nasty bioweapons?"

Wolf shuddered. "How could I forget?" _Seeing some of those up close…_

"Dozens of them were active, but how many more could've gone dormant when we defeated Andross?"

Wolf's eye widened. "You're not saying..."

"Andross's bioweapons all have a similar base chemical sequence. This is almost an exact match to them."

Bombs went off in Wolf's head and his vision turned white.

"Shit… how?" Wolf covered his mouth with a hand. Dread and horror settled in his stomach. It couldn't be possible, Fox killed him twice!

"I don't know. This might not even be related to him, though." Slippy grabbed a pen and a sticky note and started scribbling something down on it.

Peppy sighed. "Knowing Andross though… hm." Peppy suddenly looked his age for once as he stood there with a hand on his chin.

Bill tapped the table. "There's something else too. Tell 'em, dude."

"I noticed that the structure of the substance has an odd form. There's a lot of dead bacteria I've never seen before in there, but I don't know why!" Slippy exclaimed as he set his head down on the table.

Flashes of the nightmares flew through Wolf's head. "I might know what it does." He frowned and pressed a hand to the side of his head as it began to throb in pain.

 _Wonderful. Another issue for the list._

"Oh? What is it?" Slippy perked up and looked at Wolf?

"Those creatures, I remember them being able to infect people, I think?" Wolf rooted through his mind for an explanation but found nothing. "They turned them into more creatures."

"That's insane," Bill murmured as he shook his head.

Slippy was already typing at the laptop. "Can you give me anything else?"

Wolf hummed and furrowed his brows. "They ate people too, and they expand in water, they don't have eyes, that black stuff is usually a liquid… uh…" He sighed. "That's all I got, sorry."

"That's more than enough!" Slippy's voice was cheerful, which unnerved Wolf. "I'll get to work on identification, thanks!"

"No problem." Wolf smiled a little as he backed away from the table.

"Is there anything we can do with this info?" Peppy set his hands on his hips.

"Not a ton yet, but I have a huge favor."

"What's that?" Wolf crossed his arms.

"I need all of Andross's research notes when you go to Venom."

"Oh…" _I'm out of the picture, then. Figures._

"That was it. You guys can go if you want; should be at Bolse any minute now!"

Wolf nodded and turned around to leave the lab. He left with a sigh, not bothering to look back. A weight settled on his chest and constricted his lungs.

 _How am I supposed to get over this block if I can't even be any use to anybody?_

He was just a freeloader on this journey, that was it. Just a leech who can't even stand up without help.

Useless.

Wolf walked around the Great Fox as he thought about what he said. By the time he had stopped, he was back in the hangar.

It was quiet now. No talking or clanging on hammers on metal or electricity crackling, just silence. A rare vestige of uneasy peace.

Wolf saw Fox sitting atop his Arwing with his legs curled into his chest. His jacket was discarded on a wing. His back was to Wolf as he stared at the hangar door.

Wolf came up to the Arwing and moved to where he could see Fox's face. He wore a frown and a gaze of a phantom.

"What's going on, Fox?" Wolf waved at Fox. Fox jumped as his body tensed up, but then he looked down to Wolf with a neutral expression. His eyes were still haunting.

"Oh. Hey."

Wolf cocked his head. _This would be easier if I was up there. Damn legs._

"You look near-dead." Wolf crossed his arms.

Fox rolled his eyes. "Thanks for the compliment."

"You should've gotten more sleep."

"I couldn't." Fox sighed and descended the ship to sit on the edge of the wing. _Little better._

"Why not?" Wolf raised a brow.

"Feels like I'm living in a nightmare already."

"Aren't we all?"

Silence. Wolf scratched his muzzle and looked at Fox.

"We'll be at Bolse any minute," Fox murmured.

"Yeah…"

"Still coming with me?"

"You need a guide, don't you?" Wolf crossed his arms. _I can't be_ that _useless, right?_

"Hey, as long as your information holds up, I'm good." Fox raised his hands in surrender.

"They weren't ever completed because you stormed Venom." Wolf stretched his arms. "The Wolfen-III's that we owned during the aparoids were good ships, but those IV's at Bolse are top of the line." Wolf felt envy rise up in him. "What I'd do to pilot one..."

Fox chuckled. "They better be as good as you say."

Wolf grinned. "If it goes well, they'll be even better than that."

Wolf felt unease rise in his chest. He looked at Fox's Arwing during the silence, observing every scorch mark and scar. Why didn't he just repair and replace those parts? There was at least a dozen on the side he could see.

ROB 64's voice cut through the silence. "Attention all personnel. We have arrived at Bolse. Please make all necessary preparations."

Fox sighed and jumped from the wing. "Guess it's time."

"Yeah."

Wolf looked up at the ceiling and closed his eye. _Please don't let this be a failure._

You can't let everyone down again.


	11. We Used To Wait

A/N: pending the release of Starlink, this might go on a bit of a hiatus, sorry. I will probably want to write a one-shot or something based on the game, but not to worry! After that is over, I'll be right back to this!

Suggested listening: We Used To Wait by Arcade Fire

* * *

Something in the corner of your eye  
Unseen, unnoticed, unheard  
But not invisible  
Do not lose to complacency

* * *

Wolf felt apprehension twist his stomach into knots as he put his headset on and buckled into the back seat of Fox's Arwing. Fox stepped in and closed the cockpit before running preflight checks.

"G-Diffusers are a go. Communications line… green." Fox adjusted his eyepiece. "Falco, do you copy?"

"Loud and clear, Fox."

Fox nodded. "Good. ROB, can you open the doors?"

"Affirmative. Commencing procedure."

The doors in front of them slid open, revealing empty space that beckoned them into its loving embrace.

"Let's rock and roll, boys!"

Fox took off from the hangar and launched into space, Falco not far behind them. Wolf saw the distant star of Lylat blink at them, and he felt a sense of peace wash over him.

"And to our right, you will see the hellscape known as Venom, with Bolse Station over to its left." Fox angled the Arwing to face the planet.

A dusty landscape sprawled out before Wolf, dwarfing the satellite of Bolse, which looked like a small spacecraft in comparison to the massive planet. Green clouds covered the surface and bathed the planet in a sickly glow of radioactive decay.

Bolse was a lifeless satellite drifting in suspension. Wolf saw a few exterior lights still turned on, but nothing else on the station was active.

"How are we getting in there, Wolf?" Fox glanced back at him.

"There's an automated entry system. If it still works, I can give my access code." Wolf smiled and crossed his arms.

"You still remember that, dude?" Bill's surprised voice came on comms.

"Venomians were pretty strict on memorization." Wolf chuckled. "I could read off the owner's manual for the original Wolfen right now."

Bolse was much closer now. The Arwing became an ant in comparison to the massive space station that now loomed over them. Wolf felt old memories surge to the surface of his mind as he stared at the colossal solar panels that stuck out from the sides of the station.

"Haven't seen this place since the Lylat Wars." Falco whistled after he spoke. "Man, how long has it been?"

"Feels like forever." Fox flew towards the middle of the station. "Surprised this thing didn't get destroyed. Over."

Bill hummed. "Probably too much money to bother."

Wolf chuckled. "That was a huge mistake. There's a lot hidden in that box."

 _If the Venomians didn't scrap it all, that is._

An alert popped up on Fox's console. A hailing request. Fox looked back at Wolf who nodded, and he accepted the request.

An automated voice rang out on the comm. "Please state authentication code for access."

Wolf cleared his throat. "Gramactire-22193."

A moment of silence. Wolf bit his lip as he eyed the space station in front of them.

 _C'mon you slow piece of junk, just say something!_

"Authentication confirmed. Welcome to Bolse Station, Wolf O'Donnell."

Wolf breathed a sigh of relief as he relaxed in his seat. A huge set of doors in front of them began to open, revealing the darkened interior of the station.

"Guess you really came through Wolf." Falco's words were quiet, but they warmed Wolf's chest nonetheless.

"We're lucky that system was still active, " Wolf pointed out.

"Let's see what we can find, then." Fox edged towards the now open set of doors.

The void was waiting for them like an unnatural maw of a creature they couldn't fathom. Wolf felt a chill run up his spine.

 _It's just a retrieval mission. There's nothing else to it, Wolf. Just breathe._

They slipped through the void and Fox turned the headlights of the Arwing on. They were greeted with an spacious hangar where old Venomian ships lay scattered around the place. None of the lights were on, but the artificial gravity was still active.

Fox set down towards the rear of the hangar, and Falco landed close by. Fox reached to open the cockpit, but Wolf grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait." Fox turned to look at Wolf with an annoyed glint in his eyes. "Check the oxygen content first."

Fox pressed a hand to his forehead. "Right." He pressed a few buttons on the console and crossed his arms while he waited.

A moment later, the console beeped. "Says we're good to breathe."

Fox opened the cockpit and climbed out of the Arwing. Wolf reached out his arms and Fox picked him up and maneuvered him onto his back. Wolf adjusted to this all too familiar position with a sigh.

"Do we have any flashlights?" Wolf couldn't even see the ground from the top of the Arwing.

"Yeah. Here." Fox pulled a flashlight out of his coat pocket and handed it to Wolf. He turned it on and waved it around the hangar.

 _They really left in a hurry, huh? Haven't seen some of these models in years…_

"Can you point it at the ground?"

"Oh, sorry." Wolf highlighted the metal floor, and Fox climbed down the side of the Arwing with Wolf on his back.

When they hit the ground, another flash of light from nearby caught their attention. Falco was holding a flashlight as well, Bill at his side.

"This is just awesome." Falco grimaced as he scanned the hangar. "How are we gonna find these freakin' ships?"

"We go lookin' for them, " Wolf replied with a frown. Falco just rolled his eyes and looked away.

 _Man, what an asshole! What's got his feathers ruffled?_

Bill came up next to Wolf and Fox. "Any idea where we need to go?"

Wolf hummed and scratched his chin. "They're in another hangar, one for developmental projects. I don't know where that is, but I know where the control room is from here."

"Let's get going." Fox started walking toward the doorway out of the hangar while Bill and Falco followed.

The hallway that led out of the hangar was desolate, eerie, and dark. Not a sound could be heard except the clanking of boots on metal. Wolf felt unease twist his stomach up as he tightened his grip on the flashlight.

 _There can't be anything here, you idiot! This place has been abandoned for years!_

A fork in the hallway stopped them. Wolf blinked and looked at both options for a moment. He pointed at the left path.

"You sure this is the right way?" Falco crossed his arms.

Wolf rolled his eye. "Go the other way if you want. I don't care if you get lost."

Fox snorted as he walked down the path Wolf pointed to. Falco grumbled quietly while he followed behind them.

Wolf guided them along a few more bends and a staircase. Everywhere they walked, he could imagine the bustle of Venomians going about their business, laughing, talking, existing. The distant memory lodged itself in his mind and gave him a gnawing sense of loneliness.

Not all of Venom was horrible. Not everything on Corneria is good.

Or was…

Wolf frowned. What had happened to the great Lylat System?

"Hey, where to now?"

Fox's voice snapped Wolf out of his thoughts. He looked around as his ears flicked back and forth.

"Control room should be right there." He pointed to a metal door to their right. They started walking towards it.

"How are we gonna get the power back on in there?" Bill set a hand on his hip and frowned.

"I should be able to reroute some non-essential functions to get a map up and maybe get the hangar doors functioning. I hope." Wolf sighed and scratched his head.

 _Way to sound like a dumbass._

"Won't know till we try, dude!" Bill grinned before he opened the control room door. Fox stepped inside.

The first thing that stuck out to Wolf was that all of the lights were on. He turned his flashlight off and looked around the large room full of desks and computer monitors. All turned off, but the lights were blinking.

The second thing that stuck out was the noticeable lack of dust on some of the surfaces in the area.

 _What the hell?_

"Someone's been here." Wolf looked back around the room, but he couldn't spot anything out of the ordinary.

"What? Who?" Falco started to sweep the room. Fox set Wolf in an office chair before he started looking around as well.

"I don't know. This place has been dead in space for years…" Wolf moved his chair to the nearest computer and turned it on.

"Is there anything in this place that would benefit anyone?" Fox asked.

The computer finished booting up and Wolf started rooting through files to find a map. "Uhh, nothing I know of, why?"

Fox walked back over to Wolf's seat. "This place is too clean. There's not a huge mess here; it's been organized."

"Bolse was scrapped after you killed Andross. It was a disaster zone here." Wolf grimaced.

"Would they have left anything important behind during evacuation?" Fox's voice was getting more intense. Annoyance flashed through Wolf as he searched the computer.

"I'll tell you when you give me time to look through this!" Wolf narrowed his eye.

"Alright! Sorry." Fox looked away.

 _He can get so intense sometimes, it's worrying. At least he shoots for his goals…_

Wolf shook his head and continued his search. He finally found a map of the station in the maintenance section of the mainframe. The developmental hangar was a floor above them on the southern side of the base.

 _Come on Wolf, you knew that._

Wolf sighed and began poring through more records in search of the projects stationed at the hangar.

"Any luck, dude?" Bill sat down next to him and looked at his screen with interest.

"I've got the location of the hangar, but I wanna know what other experiments they had up there."

"What are you expecting to see?"

"Probably a bioweapon or two, knowing Andross. Maybe something else, not sure." Wolf shrugged.

"Oh, hey look!" Bill pointed to a folder labeled 'Classified.' Wolf grinned and tried to click on it, but it sent them to a password input screen.

"Damn it." Wolf slammed a fist on the desk. He sighed before grabbing a flash drive from a drawer.

 _I'll get this shit decoded later._ He plugged the drive in and copied every file he could find to it. Once finished, he unplugged the drive and pocketed it.

Fox walked back over once Wolf was done. "Any more luck?"

Wolf shook his head. "Got the map, but nothing else. I'll decode it at the Great Fox."

"Where's the hangar?"

"One floor up, south side."

"Alright. Let's get going." Fox leaned down to pick Wolf up just as Bill did.

Bill laughed. "You need a break. I can handle it, dude."

Fox opened his mouth to say something but then shook his head. "Alright, fine. Take him."

 _Uh… okay. Strange._

Bill grinned and lifted Wolf onto his back. They left the strange control room and started walking down the dark corridors once more. Wolf turned his flashlight on and started to keep a lookout for a stairwell.

"So… do you think someone was here recently?" Bill asked as he raised an eyebrow.

Fox hummed in front of them. "It's pretty clear they were, but why?"

"Maybe we'll find out when we get to the hangar, " Wolf said. The thought of other people going the same place they were was unnerving.

 _Why would someone come so far out here?_

They found a staircase around a bend in the hall and ascended it to the next floor. Wolf flashed the light on a set of signs on the wall next to the stairwell and another intersection.

"Southern section is that way." Wolf pointed to the path that led to the left.

"Hm. The power shouldn't have been on when we came here." Falco's voice was quiet as he stroked his beak.

Fox snorted. "What, the control room?"

Falco rolled his eyes. "No, man! I'm talking about the whole base."

 _Right... Shit._

"He's right," Wolf replied. A chill ran up his spine. "Why would a dead base still have a working hangar door?"

"Could someone still be here?" Bill's ears perked as he looked around the hallway.

"Keep your eyes peeled, boys." Fox pulled his pistol out and loaded it. _Sure hope that's enough to keep us alive._

The encounter they expected never came to pass, however. No foe came barrelling down the passage, and no gun came out from around the corner. The trip to the hangar was quiet. The emergency lights just kept flickering in and out as they bathed the world in flashes of red.

Finally, the entrance to the hangar came upon them. It was a simple set of sliding doors that Falco and Fox had to manually force open.

"Damn door has to be the only thing not working, huh?" Falco grunted as the door opened inch by inch.

 _Kinda glad I can't help._ Wolf chuckled as Falco's frustration grew. Falco shot him a glare while he yanked the rest of the door open.

"Let's find these ships." Fox stepped into the hangar with a raised gun with the others behind him.

Wolf's gut filled with worry and twitching tension. He shifted his weight around Bill's shoulders and shone the flashlight ahead of them into the pitch black room.

The hangar awaited them on the other side of the door, but the light could not even reach the other side. The group came out on a catwalk above the ground.

"Is there a light switch around here?" Fox's voice echoed throughout the dark.

"Why don't we check?" Wolf moved the light around the catwalk and stopped on a breaker box not too far away from them.

Falco walked over to the box and opened it. "Shouldn't take too long… there!" He flipped a few switches and the hangar lit up.

Wolf squinted and blinked a few times before he rubbed his eye. His eye widened when he saw the hangar in its entirety.

Below them sprawled a huge space filled with all manner of different projects. Ships, weapons, workspaces, and piles of materials cluttered the hangar and a huge door lay sealed on the other side.

Fox whistled. "Damn."

"Those are the Wolfen-IVs." Wolf pointed to a pair of ships in the far right side of the hangar.

These ships were bigger than the previous Wolfens Wolf piloted, and they were painted a deep black color with blood red accents. The ships looked more angular than the older models, as well; the wings stuck out further and bent at sharp angles.

 _They look like massive blades. Might be just as sharp, too._

"Those are so sick!" Bill grinned.

"So you did come through after all." Falco nodded, but he still had a frown on his face. Wolf snorted and rolled an eye.

Let's go check them out." Fox started walling down the catwalk, and the others followed them.

They picked their way through the mess of the hangar to get to the Wolfens. Wolf couldn't tell what half of the stuff scattered about the place was, but a part of him felt this deep unease at seeing some of it.

 _What sort of biological horrors were born here?_

Fox whistled. "Wow, these are big." He smiled and crossed his arms. "Menacing too."

Wolf nodded. "They were put in production towards the end of the Lylat Wars. Bigger bomb storage, upgraded plasma cannons, incredibly strong hull material, better G-Diffusers… even a warp drive." He looked up at the ship and grinned. It was at least twelve feet up to the cockpit.

"Is there a ladder around to get you up there, man?" Bill asked as he gawked at the ship. Wolf looked around and spotted one near a worktable.

Fox and Falco grabbed the ladder and set it up by the ship. It was just tall enough to get him up there. Bill started to climb it with Wolf still on his back.

"Is this thing gonna be able to fly?" Bill glanced back at Wolf.

"As long as it has some fuel." _I think._

"Great."

Bill climbed to the top of the Wolfen and opened the cockpit. He set Wolf in, who gave him a thumbs up before strapping in and closing the cockpit. Bill climbed back down while Wolf ran through his preflight checks.

The layout was almost exactly the same as his old Wolfen. He flipped a few switches and the display turned on.

 _How about we change it to the one-eyed setting?_ He pressed another button and the left half of the display went dark.

"Almost full tank, good. No weapons, no warp drive, no shields." Wolf grimaced. "Let's hope the engine works."

He first turned his headset back on. "I'm about to test the engine. You guys should back up."

"Got it." Fox waved at him from below.

Wolf took a breath and flipped the switch. The engines quite literally roared to life… and they stayed on. Wolf laughed.

 _Damn, this sounds so perfect._

"We're good! This baby can make it back!"

"That's so loud!" Fox's voice was barely audible. Wolf felt his face heat as he turned the engines back off.

"Sorry about that."

"It's fine. Let's get Bill in the other one."

A few moments passed and Bill entered the cockpit of the other Wolfen. "So… How's this work?"

"Just like an Arwing."

"Oh, cool." A moment later, the engines on Bill's Wolfen came to life.

"This is so sick!" Wolf smiled at hearing the utter joy in Bill's voice.

"You can say that again." Wolf felt his body relax in the close confines of the Wolfen. It felt so right to finally be back in something he could call his own. _Closest thing to my team that I've got._

Fox's voice cut in, louder this time. "You two get those ships back to the Great Fox. I want to keep looking around."

Wolf frowned. "Alright, just don't get killed."

A laugh. "I'll try not to."

"Can you open the hangar doors too, dude?" Bill asked.

"Sure."

Fox walked back up to the catwalk and back to the breaker. He flipped another switch and the hangar doors began to creak open.

"See you on the other side." Wolf waved before he began to take off.

He carefully raised up above the other projects on the hangar and eased himself out and back into the expanse of space. He took a breath when he left Bolse and its unnerving atmosphere.

 _Made it._

Bill wasn't far behind him, and together they started to fly back to the Great Fox.

"How's the ship holding up?" Wolf asked.

"It's really smooth, but a lot of systems are down. You?"

Wolf sighed. "Same here. Lots of repairs needed."

"Then it's great you're so awesome at those, then!"

Wolf felt a small smile come to his face. "I'm not that awesome." _Everyone can do what I can. They can do it better._

"There's the Great Fox." Wolf watched as the ship grew larger and larger before them. "Fox, we made it back. What's your status?"

Silence. Static in the air. Apprehension started to consume Wolf.

"Fox? Falco? You there?"

"We've got a full radio signal."

More silence.

"This is bad, man." Bill's voice was quiet.

"Fox?" Still nothing.

 _Shit. Something bad happened! Of course it did!_

Wolf took a breath to calm his rising nerves. _Chill out. Nothing's gonna change now._

"We gotta go back."

Wolf shook his head. "Not while these are in rough shape. C'mon, let's dock and switch ships."

Unease gripped Wolf and wore him thin. He ran a hand through his headfur and took a few deep breaths.

 _I don't know what happened, but if you two don't make it, we're gonna have some problems._

Don't die, you jerk.


	12. The Modern Age

Suggested listening: The Modern Age by The Strokes

* * *

You stand alone among the wreck  
Blaming yourself for problems of others  
When it never was an issue  
Stop breaking your own heart

* * *

"Whaddya mean he isn't responding?"

Wolf sighed and rubbed his temples while Peppy stood in front of him and Bill. "Something probably happened, we're going back for him!" Wolf exclaimed as Bill started walking them to the closest Arwing.

"These Wolfens better be worth the trouble then!" Peppy crossed his arms.

Wolf scoffed. "They're more than worth it."

"That better be true, or I'll hold-"

"Don't finish that sentence." Wolf glared at Peppy while Bill climbed the side of the Arwing with a grunt.

 _I take one damn misstep and everyone just has to blame me. Love being the scapegoat!_

Bill set Wolf in the back before he closed the hatch and started up the Arwing. It shot out of the hangar a moment later, and they were back in empty space.

"You know, sometimes I think I'm breaking ground with them. But then they just shut me down again!" Wolf crossed his arms and sunk into his seat.

"It's probably not easy for them, dude, but they'll come around. I guess their judgment is clouded, or whatever." Bill smiled back at Wolf.

"Yeah. Maybe." Wolf frowned and looked at his hands. "Do you trust me?"

"Sure. We're both deserters, man."

"Why did you do it?"

Bill's smile faded away. "We weren't allowed to help people when Corneria fell. That was enough for me."

"It wasn't even hard to leave?" Wolf's eye widened. I wish that would've been the case for me long ago.

"I joined the army to help people. If I'm not allowed to do that, what's the point?" Bill's gaze seemed to darken in the reflection of the cockpit glass.

"I get it." Wolf scratched his ear. "But why do you trust me?"

"Haven't given me a reason not to!" Bill grinned.

Wolf smiled as his shoulders relaxed. _Maybe I can call Bill my friend. If he's okay with that. I hope he is. I think… I think I trust him too._

"Okay. Thank you."

Bill gave him a thumbs up. Wolf smiled again and looked out the window as his ears heated up.

Bolse was approaching once again, and as it did, pressure built up in Wolf's chest. It was dark and quiet. Almost fragile.

They were hailed by the automated security system when they got close enough, and Wolf gave the code. The doors opened and the void beckoned them in to trap them once more.

"Ready?" Bill looked back at Wolf.

Wolf nodded. "Those idiots better not be dead."

Bill turned the headlights on, but there was nothing to be found in the range except for two Arwings. It was quiet and empty. That pit in Wolf's stomach only grew larger.

"Man, this is not good." Bill set the Arwing down and opened the cockpit. "What's going on?"

"Nothing good," Wolf murmured as Bill picked him up. Bill handed Wolf a flashlight and he turned it on.

They descended the Arwing and started to walk towards the exit. Bill drew a handgun and loaded it as he walked.

"Hope I'm not too heavy for you." Wolf sighed. _Being a liability isn't good for anyone, is it? I'm just dragging them down._

"Nah, dude. I had to carry heavier loads at the Academy; you're nothing!" Bill chuckled and patted Wolf's leg with his free arm.

"Okay." Wolf pulled his own pistol out of his coat when they entered the hallway. It was still quiet, almost too quiet.

 _Why can't the universe just let us do one good thing without something screwing up? Why does everything have to be so wrong now? What happened to the system?_

Wolf sighed and rested his chin on Bill's shoulder. His eye felt heavy, but his heart would not stop hammering in his chest. Shapeless walls around them threatened to drag him into the void and swallow him up.

"Do you hear that, Wolf?" Bill asked as Wolf snapped his head up, ears perked.

There were gunshots in the distance. Metal scraping on metal. Shouting.

 _Shit._

Bill started running down the hallway towards the commotion while Wolf held on as tightly as he could. _Jeez, he's really fast!_

The shouting grew louder as Bill ran, but some of it sounded… unnatural. Wolf picked out Fox and Falco, but there was more than just them. Something was wrong.

They came to a crossroads. Wolf strained his ears and angled them down each of the three pathways. "To the left!"

A bloodcurdling scream pierced the air. Wolf shivered as it grew louder, louder, louder-

They peeked around another corner and there Fox and Falco were, crouched behind an overturned couch. Plasma bolts flew by and Bill and Wolf ducked behind the corner.

"Whoa, what the hell?" Wolf stared at the plasma burns on the wall and blinked.

"Wolf? Is that-" Fox's voice was cut off by another earsplitting shriek. Wolf grit his teeth as his ears suffered.

"Yeah, it's us!" Wolf shouted. "What's going on?"

"Bioweapons!"

More gunshots. Wolf shivered. _Of course._

"Wolf, I'm gonna throw a grenade at them. Hold on, okay?" Bill fumbled around his belt for a moment before he grabbed a grenade.

Wolf nodded. "Do it."

The screaming stopped for a second and Bill tossed a grenade around the corner. Explosions rattled the corridor, and the screaming just got older and louder. The smell of burning flesh was in the air.

It stopped. Wolf's ears rang.

Bill cracked a smile as he walked around the corner. "Hey, guys."

"Bill." Fox grinned and stood up with his arms limp at his sides. "I thought we weren't gonna make it."

"We tried to contact you. What happened?"

Fox pointed behind him at the blast zone. "They did. Our comms were down, I don't know why."

Bill walked towards the blast zone. "I'm glad you two are okay!"

Wolf peeked over Bill's shoulder at the wreckage and wrinkled his nose. "What the hell is that?"

"Another of Andross's bioweapons," Falco said with a sneer.

"Yeah, but what are they?"

Disfigured bodies littered the hall. They were strange meshes of machinery and fur laying on the floor that almost looked like people. Wolf felt a sense of familiarity wash through him as he studied them.

"Cyborgs, I think."

Bill crouched down in front of one that hadn't been mangled beyond recognition. Wolf studied it with a grimace on his face.

Both legs were robotic all the way up to the hips, and the chest was mostly organic. Wires snaked through the stomach and chest where they dug under and burst through the tissue. Dried blood stained the entry and exit points, and tatters of cloth hung off of parts of the torso. The arms were organic, but the head was a different story.

The muzzle of the doglike creature looked normal, but the teeth were made of metal. One ear was missing, and the other was stitched together with more of that wiring. The eyes were unblinking silvery orbs, and more circuitry and wiring hung out of its cheek with some blood and mucus.

Bill shuddered. "Man, this is disgusting. What did Andross- oh, damn."

Wolf raised a brow. "What is it?"

"That." Bill pointed to an insignia on one of the ripped pieces of cloth.

Wolf felt a pit open in his stomach. That's one of the symbols of the Cornerian army. "Aw shit."

Fox and Falco crouched next to the body. "What's wrong?" Fox asked, his head cocked to the side.

Bill covered his mouth with a hand. "These guys are Cornerians. They were under my command during the Lylat Wars."

"Oh man." Wolf covered his face. _Is this my fault? Did I do this?_

Those dead eyes stared back at him. It was the echo of a fallen soldier, someone he had killed. It was back with a vengeance.

"What kind of monster could've done this?" Falco's voice was a low whisper.

Wolf hid his face in Bill's shoulder. _This is all my fault, I caused this. This was me._

"Wolf, this wasn't you. You're not the monster."

Wolf looked up to see Fox staring at him with a sadness in his eyes.

"This wasn't you," Fox repeated.

 _Oh._ Wolf's worldview shattered once more.

"Okay." His voice was uncertain and shaky.

"C'mon dude, don't blame yourself." Bill smiled and patted Wolf's arm.

"Guys, as sad as this is, we need to go. Now." Falco stood up and started to bounce on his heels.

Fox got up as well. "Why? What's wrong?"

Falco pointed down the hallway. The cyborgs were coming.

"Shit." Wolf held tight to Bill as he got up and started to run the opposite direction. Fox and Falco were right behind them.

 _We can make it. It's all good. We'll get out of this hellhole._

And then the screaming started.

It shook Wolf to his core and made him latch tighter onto Bill as his heart threatened to burst. Fear and weakness flooded Wolf's mind. They were parasites infecting his well being, and he hated it all.

 _Weak. You're weak, Wolf._

An eternity of shrieking later, the group returned to the hangar and ran for the Arwings.

"See you in the sky, dudes!" Bill gave the others a thumbs up as he went to his ship.

"I hope we find answers to this on Venom," Wolf murmured while Bill climbed the side of the Arwing.

"Yeah, but we don't know who's doing all this. Who was here before us?" Bill set Wolf in the back and closed the cockpit.

The creatures finally entered the hangar. Each one looked different than the rest, which made Wolf shudder. Their screams were identical. Dismal dread washed through him.

 _Who had the time to create these? What insane mind did that doctor have?_

"Can't you start this ship any faster?" Wolf growled and watched as the cyborgs stalked ever closer.

"Doing my best, man!"

The machines aimed their guns. Wolf's heart crawled into his chest. He took one more breath.

The engine roared to life with the ferocity of a lion. They were gone.

"We made it." Bill sounded out of breath and shaky. He chuckled.

Fox's voice came on over comms. "Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah, we're here." Wolf heard a sigh from the other side.

Two Arwings were flying ahead of them towards the Great Fox. They were all finally back in the sweet embrace of space without a care in the world. Just a moment of silence.

"Good. Thanks for getting us out of there." Fox sounded exhausted.

"Seriously, I thought we were gonna die. I owe you guys one." Falco paused for a second. "Both of you."

Wolf blinked. _Did I hear him correctly?_

"Still don't trust you though," Falco added. Wolf felt himself smiling anyway.

Wolf felt his eye grow heavy as he listened to the others talk _. When's the last time I slept well?_

Ugh, right. Before this crap started.

Bill's soothing voice let Wolf doze off for a few minutes in peace. He sighed and wrapped his trenchcoat around himself while he closed his eye.

 _Why did Andross leave such a legacy across the system? Why did he plant bioweapons all across the planet? There's no point._

Why destroy something you want control of?

Wolf shook his head. _Best left for another day._

"Wolf, you okay?" Bill glanced back at Wolf with a frown on his face.

"Yeah, sorry." Wolf looked out the window. "Tired."

Bill laughed. "Aren't we all, dude?"

Falco snorted. "I just hope those ships and the flash drive were worth it."

"The more we find out about what's going on, the better. Those ships will help, too." Fox almost sounded happy.

"Those Wolfens are pretty cool," Falco admitted. Wolf chuckled.

"Told you. They beat out most stuff even in this age." He crossed his arms and grinned.

"That would've been a force to see back then!" Fox's voice was bright and excited.

"Good thing they weren't finished, honestly." Wolf shook his head. "I don't wanna know what would've happened otherwise."

"Yeah… I guess you're right." A moment of silence. "At least we get to see them in action!"

Bill cleared his throat. "Are we gonna give that drive to Slippy when we get back?"

Wolf nodded. "Yeah." Flashes of black oily creatures went through his mind. "Hope he's figured out what stuff those monsters were made of."

Fox chuckled. "Slippy probably figured it out just as we left."

The Great Fox came into view ahead of them. The dark silhouette gave Wolf a strange sense of comfort. _Never thought I'd be happy to see this ship in my life. Until I'm back to fighting these guys, I guess._

Wolf frowned as sadness enveloped him. _I really hope that doesn't happen._

The Arwings entered the Great Fox's hangar and set down by the hulking Wolfens. Wolf sighed as Bill opened the cockpit.

"Man, am I glad that's over." Bill picked Wolf up and climbed down the Arwing to meet with Fox and Falco who were talking with a distressed Peppy.

"Thank goodness you're okay!" Peppy hugged Fox tight while Fox protested.

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" Fox broke free of Peppy's grasp. "Thanks to these guys." He pointed to Bill and Wolf.

Peppy patted Bill on the shoulder and looked at Wolf. "Wolf, I'm real sorry about what I said. Thanks for getting them back."

Wolf nodded as a sense of joy expanded in his heart. "You're welcome."

Peppy rubbed his hands together. "Fox, can you take Wolf and go check on Slippy? He hasn't left the lab since you guys did."

"Sure."

Fox took Wolf from Bill and started to head out of the hangar. _Hm, he's not as bulky in the back as Bill is. He's softer, sorta like a pillow. Not sure which I like more._

Fox navigated the Great Fox until they reached the recreational deck and entered the lab. Slippy was still hunched over a table and busy at work as his hands flew from one task to the next with ease.

Fox cleared his throat. "We're back!" He grinned.

"That's great. Yeah." Slippy didn't even look up at them while they crowded around him.

"So what's up?"

Slippy shook his head. "I identified what the bacteria are. Not good."

Wolf set the flash drive down beside Slippy, and he snatched it up and plugged it into the laptop.

"What? What is it?" Fox set Wolf in a chair and stood next to Slippy.

"The bacteria are extremophiles and they will consume all biomass, no exceptions. They multiply in water and they can't be killed easily. I…" Slippy shook his head.

"I don't think we can save Corneria."

Wolf felt his stomach drop and his throat constrict.

 _It's over, isn't it?_

 _We failed._


	13. Home

Suggested listening: Home by Vince Staples (thank you Spiderverse for giving me a rap song I actually enjoy!)

Side note: I feel bad for writing shorter chapters recently. Is this burnout?

* * *

Our hearts lie in the strangest places

And our thoughts echo for all to hear

All I want is a home, a family

Something to call my own

* * *

"Damn it! Ow!"

"Wolf, calm down! I'm trying to stick it in!"

"Can't you pick up the pace a little?"

"Why can't we just savor the moment?"

"Because it hurts! Hurry up and finish!"

"And… done!"

Wolf rolled out from under the ship with a sigh. He wiped his forehead and glared at Fox as he sat up from the roller.

"Why was that shit necessary?" He raised an eyebrow and exchanged his wrench for a screwdriver.

"Those wires are important! Maybe they'll save your life one day."

"Damn near singed my arm off with the wires!"

"Not my fault you've got such thick fur." Fox grinned.

"Whatever you say, Fox." Wolf rolled his eye and rolled back under the Wolfen. He grabbed the panel off of the floor and screwed it back into place to cover up the loose wiring.

"There. All the undercarriage on this one is done; now the engine. Then weapons, warp drive, and shield." Wolf rolled back out and gave Fox a thumbs up.

"Is the engine similar to an Arwing?" Fox picked Wolf up and climbed the ladder to the top of the massive fighter. He set Wolf down in the cockpit.

"Your ships were built for speed and stuff. Wolfens are built only for raw power," Wolf replied as he pressed a button on the console. The hood of the Wolfen popped up with a click and startled Fox.

"Oh damn, this is a monster!" Fox whistled and crossed his arms.

"Told ya." Wolf smiled and crawled to set next to Fox. "The engineers did not screw around."

"Wouldn't have had a good time if these had been finished back then."

"Probably not." Wolf felt a flash of guilt erupt in his chest while he checked the heat sinks of the engine.

"You think these will help us?" Fox's voice was small and scared.

 _So different from what I saw in the sky. Almost like he's two different people._

Wolf nodded. "Probably. At least we'll be ready for Venom."

"Can you get it done in time?"

Wolf bit his lip while he looked over the engine. "How much time we got?"

Fox shrugged. "A few days, maybe. No telling what's going on in the system."

"Has it all been dark?" The pit in Wolf's stomach grew bigger.

"Radio silence. Slippy thinks the comms are all jammed, but I dunno." Fox shook his head. "Lylat hasn't been in trouble like this before."

"What else could be out there?" Wolf hugged himself and sighed.

"I don't know, but maybe Venom has answers."

"Maybe."

Wolf tapped his claws on the metal of the Wolfen as his mind started working. _What could the rest of the system be doing? Are there bioweapons everywhere? Is it just Corneria?_

 _Or could we be some of the last people to exist? Ever?_

Wolf's hackles stood on end. "Can you get me some tools?"

"Sure."

Fox hopped down the Wolfen and came back a moment later with an armful of tools, parts, and wires. Wolf took a wrench and began to work on some portions of the engine.

 _Looks exactly like my old Wolfen. Shouldn't be too complicated to fix this… but the other stuff might be more challenging._

"We're all counting on you, Wolf." Fox reached out and hesitated for a moment before he patted Wolf's shoulder.

Counting… on me? Did I hear that right?

"Why?" Wolf furrowed his brows and removed a panel on the engine.

"You're the only one who can work on these."

Wolf rolled his eye. "You're smart, you could too."

"Not as fast as you." Fox sat next to Wolf as he made adjustments to the heat sinks.

A smile grew on Wolf's face, but he quickly fought it down. "O- oh. Okay."

 _He thinks I'm worth something? He should get his head on straight._

"You've got this." Fox gave him a thumbs up. "Seriously."

"Oh. Thank you." Wolf blinked as a flicker of happiness grew in his chest.

He swore his foot just twitched in his boots. _Weird._

 _I've got no choice now. I have to live up to his expectations, or he's gonna hate me again. They're all gonna be disappointed if I don't do this right._

"Fox."

"Hm?"

"Do you trust me?"

Fox blinked and cocked his head. "What kind of question is that?"

"A serious one." Wolf crossed his arms and frowned.

"I don't see why you feel the need to-"

"Bullshit. Quit dodging the question." Wolf slammed his palm on the metal surface of the Wolfen. "Do you trust me?"

Fox flinched back. "You've done nothing to hurt us so far. You've saved me and Falco, and Slippy likes you." Fox hummed and scratched his chin. "I think… yeah. I think I can start trusting you."

Relief washed through Wolf. "Oh. Thank you," he found himself saying.

"I hope the others can start trusting you."

"Yeah. Me too."

Wolf checked a few more items on the engine before he nodded to himself and crawled back to the cockpit to close the hood. The engine wasn't even the main problem; everything else was.

"Help me to the shield generator?" Wolf reached put towards Fox.

Fox picked Wolf up and carried him down the Wolfen and around to the back of the ship where he set him down by the hulking boosters. A panel was fitted between a few of them which Wolf unscrewed and set to the side. A glass cylinder lay in the middle of the compartment, but it was lifeless. Some of the glass was cracked and broken.

"Oh no, this isn't good." Wolf bit a finger as he surveyed the damage. Ugh, what a repair job.

"What's the matter?"

"Shields have no power at all, and the containment is busted." Wolf looked back at Fox. "Don't suppose you have a replacement?"

Fox shook his head.

Wolf groaned. "Great."

 _Okay, I can make something out of this. I need… binding gel. A power source... And a strong one at that. These circuits are in terrible shape too. What kinda battery will I need?_

"You got any spare power sources?"

Fox hummed. "How strong you need?"

"As strong as you got."

"Hmm. Oh! Got it!" Fox snapped his fingers and smiled. "Be right back!"

 _Alone with my thoughts again. Wonderful._

Wolf sighed and stared up at the ceiling. I hate these repairs. Why couldn't the engineers have just finished these all that time ago?

He closed his eye. _I hate all of this._ _I hate this damn system. It took everything from me and now I'm all alone._

 _Leon… Panther… where are you? What happened to you? You guys better still be alive, or I'll kill you when I get down to hell too._

Wolf shook his head. _Stop dwelling on the what-ifs! You've only got the present._

"What's up, dude?"

"Gah!"

Wolf jumped and slammed his head on the booster. "Shit, ouch!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Wolf felt a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, ugh, I'm fine." Wolf rubbed his head and turned to face Bill.

"Oh, good!" Bill grinned and sat down next to Wolf. "What's going on, man?"

"Just trying to fix this damn ship."

"Not going well?"

Wolf shook his head. "Not enough parts. Dunno if I can fix em."

Bill patted Wolf on the back and grinned. "If anyone can figure something out, it's you, dude!"

Wolf smiled. "Thanks."

"So what's this weird thing?" Bill pointed at the broken cylinder in the chamber.

"It's supposed to hold the battery for the shields."

"And I'm guessing it's-"

"Busted." Wolf sighed and rubbed his throbbing head.

"Any ideas?"

"Fox had one. He's getting something."

Bill wrapped an arm around Wolf's shoulders. Wolf flinched for a moment but soon relaxed into it. He looked over at Bill and raised a brow.

"You finally gettin' along with him?" Bill asked.

Wolf nodded. "Yeah, I think. He hasn't shouted at me in a while, and he said he could start trusting me, so."

"That's great news, dude!" Bill's ears perked and his tail started to wag.

"Hope I don't screw up again."

"Hey! You aren't gonna do anything to make him hate you. It's gonna be alright."

"I… I just can't keep this up. Everyone hates me and I'm just trying to help." Wolf felt tears pricking at his eye and he wiped them away. "I know I did bad shit in the past. I regret it and I don't excuse doing that stuff, but we've got bigger fish to fry now."

"Wolf…"

"I'm just trying to do what I can. That isn't enough."

Bill was silent. His brows were furrowed as he stared down at his lap.

"You need to use these words on the people that are hurting you. Dude, you gotta show em this side of you." Bill moved closer to Wolf and smiled.

"Show them you aren't this selfish asshole. Show everyone who you really are."

Wolf felt himself fracture. Reality broke into two and dragged him towards both sides and ripped him apart.

 _Duality. Come on, Wolf, it's been there the whole time. You've got a choice to make._

 _Damn, you're a huge melodramatic idiot._

"Bill…"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks. I needed that." Wolf gave a crooked smile and sat up straight.

"Anytime, man!"

Wolf let loose a breath he didn't know he was holding as some tension in his chest dissipated. He refocused on the shield generator and poked his head into the chamber.

 _Alright, we can fix this. Or, we can try to._

"Wolf, I got what you need- oh, hey Bill!"

Wolf turned around to see a grinning Fox holding something shiny in his hands. Wolf cocked his head as he stared at Fox.

"What's that?"

"Crystals from the caves in Sauria. Slippy had some on hand from my escapades there, and they're apparently great power sources." Fox handed Wolf a small blue crystal.

"Feels like a little heartbeat." Wolf cradled the stone and relished its warmth. "Is Slippy okay?"

Fox shrugged. "He's buried himself in his work again. Probably looking for a miracle to stop all this."

Wolf scoffed and shook his head. "If only."

"We've just gotta see what we can do. There's an answer, I know it."

 _I sure hope so._

Wolf looked over to Bill. "Hey, can you get me some binding gel for this?"

"Yeah, one second!" Bill got up and walked around the ship and out of sight.

Wolf ran his hand over the jagged surface of the small gem. "This looks like what's in Krystal's staff."

"Probably same material. It's pretty awesome, you know!" Fox started to grin like a little kid.

Wolf hummed while a question started to form itself in his head. "Hey, Fox."

Fox's ears perked. "What's up?"

"You have a thing for her? For Krystal?"

Silence. Fox's gaze turned icy and attacking. Wolf swallowed.

 _Did I do something wrong?_

Then Fox snorted. And laughed.

"Huh?" Wolf asked as Fox clutched his stomach.

"That's- that's the best thing I've heard all day. Oh man!" Fox wiped a tear from his eye.

"What are you talking about?" Irritation began to show itself in Wolf's voice.

"I'm not into her, Wolf." Fox chuckled. "Funniest thing I've heard in a long while!"

 _Huh. Figured he'd get that question often._

"Oh. Alright." Wolf rolled the gem around in his hands.

"She's the closest thing to a younger sister I've got... Why do you ask?"

Wolf shrugged. "Just figured. You're protective of her and you're close."

Fox rolled his eyes. "That's me with the guys too. I protect my family."

Wolf shuffled the thought around in his head for a moment before he nodded. "I feel that way with my team."

"They're our families."

"Yeah."

"Hey Wolf, here's that stuff!" Bill turned the corner and tossed Wolf a plain spray can of binding gel.

"Thanks."

Wolf turned around and got up close to the shield generator. He reached in and set the crystal in the cylinder before he cleared the shards of glass from the rest of the chamber.

 _Someone overloaded the system. Probably when they were running tests… hm. Maybe they didn't have a strong enough resistor. I'll have to look at that too._

Wolf pried open a panel near the container. _Yep. Resistor's fried._

"Ugh, let's see… there." Wolf sprayed the gel across the cracked and missing parts of the glass.

"How long is that gonna hold?" Fox asked.

"Long enough until we can get a proper replacement." Wolf looked down at the mess of fried wires. "Do either of you know what a resistor is?"

"A what?" Bill scratched his head and frowned.

Wolf sighed. "Nevermind Panther, I'll just go get it."

And then Wolf got up and took a step.

And then he hit the ground again.

 _What?_

"What?" Fox stared down at Wolf with widened eyes.

 _Are my legs working? How?_

Wolf tried to move his leg, but it only shifted a little. _Come on! We got there for a second!_

"Can you walk, dude?" Bill reached a hand down and Fox copied the action after a second.

 _I don't need them-_

Flashes of fear and loneliness hit Wolf. Uselessness and pain ran rampant through his headspace. Panther and Leon's faces full of fear and worry.

 _What are you doing? They trust you. They want to help you!_

 _Huh._ Wolf looked at their hands as realization hit him in the face.

 _Maybe they can become my family one day._

Wolf took their hands and stood up with them.

He was still standing.

"I'm up. Whoa." Wolf took a step and stumbled for a second before Fox kept him steady.

"We've got you. Let's take it slow, okay?" Fox took a step as Wolf did.

Wolf cracked a smile. "I'm walking. I'm actually walking." He took another shaky step. And another.

"You're doing great, dude! One at a time!"

 _If I was told this was gonna happen two years ago… I would've laughed._

"Thanks, guys."

Fox smiled. "You're welcome."

"Anytime, man!" Bill exclaimed.

Wolf loosened his grip on the others as his legs grew less shaky. Soon enough, he let go and took a few small steps.

"I'm doing it!" Wolf started laughing.

 _I'm walking and I'm with these two. I think I'm with the right people now. I think it'll be okay._

Wolf took a few more steps towards the tool cabinets in front of him. He felt strong again. Maybe even one step towards being whole.


	14. A Sadness Runs Through Him

A/N: Yeah, I know. Been a while. I apologize sincerely for the wait, writing this story has been pretty hard lately. Taking a break to write oneshots has helped and I night do that more, but I'm not gonna drop this story! I intend to tell it to the end. Despite that, enjoy this chapter! Please leave feedback if you can.

Recommended listening: A Sadness Runs Through Him by The Hoosiers

* * *

We told ourselves it would be over

And that the tiredness would fade

But we are still here

Still working through the pain

* * *

"Should be all done."

"Looks good, dude!"

Wolf set the wrench back in the toolbox and grinned as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He gazed upon the engine of the Wolfen for a moment before he climbed down and landed beside Bill.

"Now I've just got to fix the warp drive and weapons." Wolf stretched his legs as he spoke.

 _Damn, this feels good._

"You think you'll get that stuff done soon?" Bill grabbed Wolf's trenchcoat from a chair and handed it to him.

"I think so, but not before Venom." Wolf shook his head. "I'll probably need Slippy's help."

Bill sighed and set his hands on his hips. "He's still in his lab, man. Doubt that'll happen."

Wolf frowned. "Damn. Guess I'll figure it out."

He looked up at the Wolfen and nodded. _She'll be a beauty when she's done. And thanks to Bill's help, it'll be done quick._

His stomach interrupted his thoughts by growling loudly. Bill chuckled while Wolf clutched it and smiled.

Bill started walking towards the elevator. "I could go for some food right now, man."

"Yeah, me too." Wolf followed him into the elevator and pressed the button for the second floor. He leaned against the wall and faced Bill.

"So… how're those legs of yours doin'?" Bill cocked his head.

"They're a bit stiff but fine otherwise." Wolf paused. "All thanks to you and Fox," he added as his face heated up.

"Aww, dude! That's so sweet of you!"

"Yeah, well don't tell anyone I said that." Wolf huffed and looked away as Bill laughed.

"What, nobody is gonna believe you've got feelings?" Bill punched Wolf's shoulder playfully.

"Shut up, Bill." _Why did I even bother telling him that? What a dork._

"You need to loosen up!" Bill clapped Wolf on the shoulder as the elevator deposited them on the second floor.

"I'm plenty loose." Wolf pushed Bill's hand from his shoulder and walked down the hallway.

Bill shook his head. "If you say so."

They stopped in front of the mess hall door and Wolf felt his nerves skyrocket into stupid bursts. He took a breath and steeled them while he looked at the ground.

"Remember what we talked about?" Bill asked.

"Yeah, I remember." Wolf nodded and stepped inside.

Everyone was in the mess hall save for Slippy, eating and talking. Wolf saw Fox laughing at something Falco was telling him while they sat at a table.

Then a quiet fell when everyone focused on Wolf. Falco's smile turned into a scowl before he looked away and crossed his arms. Wolf bit his lip and walked to the counter where Krystal was. The peace resumed.

"Wolf… you're walking." Krystal blinked and stared at him.

 _No shit, Krystal._ "Yeah, I am." Wolf shrugged. "We figured it out."

"We?" Krystal raised a brow.

"Yeah!" Bill jumped next to Wolf and handed him a plate. "Me and Fox helped him!"

"Huh, alright." Krystal set a hamburger on each plate and Bill licked his chops.

"Did you cook these?" Wolf asked.

"Yep!" Krystal nodded. "Loved cooking for a long while." She stepped out from behind the counter and grabbed another plate for herself.

"Do we have enough supplies for this?" Wolf raised a brow.

Krystal hummed. "Technically we shouldn't, but I took a few creative liberties. We will need more food soon enough, though."

"Too many on the ship for too long?"

Krystal nodded.

Wolf followed Bill to an empty table and sat down next to him, while Krystal sat down opposite of them. Wolf felt his shoulders tense up and he forced them to relax.

"So… how are you walking again?" Krystal asked.

Wolf shrugged. "I just needed a little-"

"The power of love and friendship lifted him to his feet!" Bill sang after he took a bite from his burger.

Wolf rolled his eye. "It wasn't that magical. I just needed to grab a resistor for the Wolfen and it kinda... Happened."

 _Well… it really was the power of friendship, I guess. And teamwork. Damn, that's way too cheesy._

"If you say so." Krystal chuckled while Wolf tried to avoid her gaze.

 _Hope she's not looking in my mind. I hope she took my advice earlier._

Wolf took a bite of his burger. "Oh man, this is awesome! You did a great job!"

"Thank you." Krystal smiled and Bill gave her a thumbs up while he ate.

Wolf heard laughter and looked to see Fox chukling at something Falco was saying. Wolf's ears drooped as he watched them speak.

 _Why can't Falco trust me like that? I need to try harder to get him to trust me!_

Wolf narrowed his eye at Falco. _I'll figure it out… I hope._

"Uh, dude? You here with us?" Bill waved a hand in front of Wolf's face.

Wolf blinked and shook his head. "Yeah, yeah. I'm here, sorry." He smiled and took another bite.

"You've always got your head in the clouds, huh?" Bill shook his head.

"I guess I worry too much."

Krystal clasped her hands together. "You're just like Fox. Always worrying about everyone." Her gaze darkened. "Sometimes in the worst of ways."

"What does that mean?" Wolf asked after he finished the last of his burger.

Krystal shook her head as her expression grew normal again. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it."

Wolf raised a brow but didn't push. _Guess everyone has their secrets, even the mind-reader. Especially the mind-reader._

"My compliments to the chef!" Bill exclaimed.

"Thank you."

 _Ugh, can't stand this room anymore. I need some air._

Wolf sighed. "I'm gonna go take a walk." He picked up his plate and stood up.

He waved to Bill before he walked out of the mess hall and threw his plate in the trash on the way. He felt tension lift from his shoulders when he stepped down the blank metal corridors that echoed his clanking footsteps loudly.

 _Everyone is just everywhere and it's annoying. I'm so tired._

He found himself entering the bridge where only ROB was, working away at a computer screen.

 _Good enough. Least I can see the stars._

Wolf walked over to the guardrail at the edge of the bridge and leaned against it. He stared out at the shining stars that flew by in a blur and hummed to himself. He wondered if they knew about his troubles, but chose not to care about them. He wondered if they truly existed.

 _Man… what am I gonna do? We are gonna be on Venom soon and I've got to help them on the surface._

Wolf sighed. The stars stared back at him with cold indifference.

"You seem to be under large amounts of stress and anxiety. Are you feeling satisfactory?"

Wolf jumped and turned to see ROB staring at him from nearby. He clutched his chest. "You scared the hell outta me!"

"My apologies. Slippy programmed me to recognize when an individual is feeling suboptimal so I might be of assistance." ROB's red visor twinkled.

"So you're supposed to be a therapy robot too?" Wolf snorted and leaned back on the railing.

"If you wish to designate me by that."

Wolf sighed. "Yeah, well, I'm worried. You know, about the mission."

"What is there to concern yourself over? Chances of mission success are high."

"Not that." Wolf smiled and shook his head. "I'm worried about what we might find down there. Like… what if we find out that there's no way to stop the weapons? What if I screw up?"

"That is unlikely. Fox considers you an asset to the team."

"Huh?" Wolf's eye widened. "He told you that?"

"No, but it is not difficult to observe."

 _Huh… okay…_

"There is a consistent possibility you will not like the answers you find on Venom, but you will attempt to save everyone regardless, correct?" ROB asked.

"Yeah, that's true… but what if there really isn't a way?" Wolf bit his lip and shoved his hands in his coat pockets.

"From personal experience, I have found that Fox succeeds against impossible odds. Keep your mind open, perhaps the future is favorable for you."

"Thanks, ROB."

"It is in my programming to be of assistance. No that is necessary." Wolf swore he could hear a smile in his voice as ROB walked away.

 _Huh, can't believe I just vented to a damn robot. And it worked._

Wolf chuckled and turned back around to the stars. They didn't seem quite as cold before, but they still stared at him with an uncaring gaze.

 _Whatever is on Venom, it'll be okay. It has to be okay… it has to. Fox is with us._

 _Fox always saves everyone, doesn't he?_

The door hissed open behind Wolf and he saw Fox walk in with a frown on his face. He quickly turned it into a grin as he saw Wolf and waved.

"Hey, what are you doing up here?" Fox asked as he leaned against a console.

Wolf walked up to him and shrugged. "Just needed some air. Talked to your robot about stuff."

"Man, you must be going crazy. Talking to a robot of all things." Fox chuckled as Wolf rolled his eye.

"Hey, it helped me!" Wolf crossed his arms.

"I'm joking, I'm joking." Fox patted Wolf's shoulder. "I've talked to him too, don't worry."

"So, why are you up here?" Wolf questioned with a raised brow.

"Same as you. Needed space."

"Oh, then I can leave if you-"

Fox held up a hand and shook his head. "No, you're fine. You're… well, you know."

 _I don't know._ "Uh, okay."

It was quiet for a tense moment before Fox cleared his throat. "Hey ROB, when will we be at Venom?"

"Arrival at Venom in approximately two hours," ROB called from the other side of the room.

"So we'll be there soon, huh?" Wolf tried to smile at Fox.

"Yeah."

"You know the atmosphere is really toxic, right? You got contingencies for that?" Wolf crossed his arms.

Fox nodded. "We've got spacesuits that we don't use much. They have plenty of oxygen and good life support systems, and they're down in the armory, they'll work."

"Sounds good."

Fox's gaze clouded over. "Think we'll need weapons?"

"Probably just in case. You never know if there's trouble." Wolf grinned.

"Let's hope not. I mean, I don't wanna save your ass again, anyway." Fox cocked his head and grinned at Wolf.

Wolf scoffed and punched Fox's shoulder lightly. "Aw, shut up!"

Fox laughed. "Look at that, you're actually expressing your emotions!"

"Ugh, you're merciless." Wolf's face heated up as he looked away. Fox only laughed harder. "You like picking on people that much?"

"Nah, just you."

 _He's such a dweeb._ "You're a dweeb, you know."

"Maybe I am! I think the title suits me!" Fox set his hands on his hips.

Wolf smiled and raised his hands in defeat. "Fine, you win."

"Cute, you thought you had a chance against me." Fox patted Wolf's back.

 _He really must be in a good mood. I wonder what's making him so happy? He hasn't acted like this much at all before._

"Why are you so cheery?" Wolf asked.

Fox shrugged. "Just glad to be safe and alive for a little while. Relax just a bit before we go."

"Whatever floats your boat, man."

Wolf and Fox fell quiet. Wolf's mind echoed with several different thoughts clamoring for attention, and he fought to ignore it all in vain.

 _I hope we're getting better. I… I want to be his friend. Somehow. I hope he feels the same._

Wolf crossed his arms and hummed. He couldn't remember the last time he didn't feel completely on edge; he didn't understand why, either. It was just Fox, his ex-rival!

 _Eh, maybe I'm just going crazy. Panther and Leon would understand._

Wolf sighed. Had it only been a few days since everything went to hell? Since he lost his team?

 _Dammit, I'll find you guys. I promise. You guys must have taken the Wolfens and escaped, they weren't on Corneria. You had to!_

"You doing okay? You look a little distant." Fox interrupted his thoughts with a small wave.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay." Wolf nodded. "Thinking too much is all."

"It'll be okay." Fox reached out and hesitated for a moment before he set a hand on Wolf's shoulder. Wolf looked down at it and smiled.

"I'll try to keep a positive disposition for ya." Wolf chuckled as his face heated up. _Kinda embarrassing to coddle me like this, ain't it?_

 _Ah, but I like it a little bit. Fine._

"We should probably get geared up. Sorry, there's not been much time to rest."

Wolf shook his head. "Nah, it's fine. We can rest after this mission."

"If you're sure…. Come on." Fox waved him on as he left the bridge.

 _Well, guess that's enough time to clear my head. Thanks again, ROB._

A quick and boring elevator ride brought them to the bottom floor and into the hallway. Fox led them past the hangar doors and around a corner into a darker hallway that was full of dust. Wolf coughed as they kicked up dust.

"Sorry about that." Fox opened a door and deposited them in a room full of lockers and metal benches.

An inch of dust covered everything. Fox smiled sheepishly as he opened a locker and pulled out a padded black suit.

"We haven't used these for a while. They're the space suits, should adjust to your size." He handed Wolf a suit and pulled one out for himself. "Oh, Falco and Katt will be here in a minute."

Wolf groaned as he took off his jacket and boots. "Wonderful…"

"What's the problem?" Fox looked over at Wolf.

"Oh it's nothing, just the fact that they both hate me is all." Wolf rolled his eye. "Just that tiny little problem."

"I'm sure they don't hate you." Fox shook his head while he began to put the spacesuit on.

Wolf followed suit and stuck his legs and arms into the suit and zipped it up all the way. It was baggy, but then Fox pressed a button on the arm and it shrunk to fit Wolf.

"Have you seen the looks they give me? Worse than being shot at." Wolf sighed and looked down at his body.

"Maybe it's because they can't help but stare somewhere else." Fox grinned and looked down at Wolf's stomach.

"Yeah, funny." Wolf stuck his tongue out at Fox. "It ain't even that bad a gut!"

"Okay, fine. At least it's charming?" Fox asked while he zipped up his suit. He pressed the button and it shrunk to fit his form without an issue.

"Yeah, and I make it work." Wolf grinned and stood tall.

"Oh no, are you about to woo me with your charm and looks?" Fox gasped.

Wolf growled and extended his claws. "Better watch out, I'm here to steal your heart!"

"Then I guess you've vanquished me, Lord O'Donnell." Fox couldn't keep the smile from his face as he bowed.

 _Gosh, why are we being so stupid? But… this is pretty fun. Heh._

"So I've won you over, have I?" Wolf reached a hand down and Fox took it with a snort.

The door behind them opened.

"The hell are you two doing?" A very angry Falco asked as Wolf's head whipped around. His face heated up.

 _And of course, he had to walk in. Oh, and that cat._

Fox snickered. "Entertaining ourselves while waiting for you guys. You should really learn to be more punctual."

Wolf sighed and lifted Fox up. "You're too much, pup."

"They should've been here sooner."

Falco sighed, his gaze darkening. "Let's just get this done."

Fox pulled two more suits out and handed them to Falco and Katt.

"So… do you even know where Andross's lab is?" Katt asked Fox.

"Well… no. But Wolf does!" Fox slapped Wolf's back and grinned.

Katt rolled her eyes. "Great… him."

"Well don't sound so excited to work with me." Wolf huffed and set his hands on his hips.

Katt didn't respond as she put her spacesuit on, followed by Falco. Fox opened another locker and brought out four space helmets, each one for their respective head shape. He handed them to everyone.

"Should have some rifles around here somewhere…" Fox searched more lockers around the room. "Should've kept this place organized."

 _They must not do stuff outside their ships often. Fox should probably keep his ground combat skills up to shape, even if he doesn't use em. Maybe he'd let me spar with him?_

"Oh! Found them!" Fox waved everyone to a new locker that was filled with old rifles and pistols.

Wolf pulled a rifle out of the locker and began inspecting it. "Damn, these are at least a decade old! Have you bothered to clean any of them?"

Fox grinned and looked away. "We never had a use for them after Dad died. I should have looked after them, but stuff just happened."

"Well, we gotta clean these if we wanna use them." Wolf rubbed some dust off of the scope. "Wait, do they even fire plasma? Or bullets?"

"It's plasma! Don't worry about that."

"Least there's that." Wolf sat down and began taking the rifle apart. He looked up and saw Katt staring at him with a strange expression.

"What, never seen a guy clean a gun before?" Wolf asked.

"Never an outlaw like you, no." Katt crossed her arms.

 _Great, this again. Can't she see we're all on the same side? None of us are out to get each other._

Wolf rolled his eye. "You're not exactly a saint either, last I checked. Now, what kind of contraband did the Hot Rodders sell on the black market again? Care to remind me?" He flashed her a smile.

Katt didn't respond. Wolf turned away from her and continued cleaning his gun while satisfaction bloomed in his chest.

 _Serves her right, trying to insult me. I'm sure she's done the same stuff I have as a crime lord. Maybe even worse! Who knows what she could've done?_

Fox cleared his throat and looked at the three of them with a frown on his face. "Guys, can't we be civil? I know some of us don't like each other, but we have to work together."

Fox's disappointed gaze struck Wolf and left a painful imprint in his mind. Man… he's right. He sighed and nodded.

"Okay," Wolf murmured. "I'll do better."

"Alright, whatever." Katt held up her hands in defeat. "I'll play by your rules." She snorted and rolled her eyes.

 _Yeah, let's see how long that promise lasts._

Wolf finished cleaning his gun and reassembled it. "There, not too hard. Can you guys do it too?"

Fox smirked. "Of course I can. Academy didn't teach me nothin'!" He grabbed a rifle and started to go through the same motions that Wolf did.

 _Hey, he's pretty good. Not a complete nerd after all! Now I wonder if the others can do that._

Falco and Katt could not clean their guns by themselves, unfortunately. They asked for help so much that Wolf and Fox just offered to clean it for them.

"I can't believe you two use guns on the regular and don't know how to clean them!" Wolf tutted and shook his head.

"Most guns aren't ancient enough to need cleaning." Falco flipped the gun over in his hands and inspected it as he spoke.

Fox patted his shoulder. "Still an important skill to learn, birdbrain!"

Falco rolled his eyes. "If ya say so, Foxy." He shouldered the rifle. "Thanks for the help."

Fox gave him a thumbs-up and then turned to face the rest of the team.

"So, when we get to Venom, we're going to and as close as we can to Andross's lab. Wolf, I'm trusting you to help us find that," Fox started.

Wolf nodded. "I can handle it."

Falco opened his mouth to say something, but then promptly shut it. Wolf rolled his eye and turned back to face Fox.

"When we're inside, look for anything that could give us a clue about this problem we have. Notes, a flash drive, anything."

Falco raised a wing. "Didn't the Cornerians sack the place after we went through?"

"They did… but we have to look anyway. There has to be something they missed."

"I hope you're right, Fox." Falco crossed his arms.

Wolf watched as Fox's confidence broke for a split second. Wolf caught a peek inside Fox's mind at that moment, and he saw someone just as scared as they were.

 _He just wants us to be okay… even if he isn't._

Wolf sighed. "Let's do it then. Let's find some answers to this nightmare."

Fox grinned. "It's gonna work out."

Wolf wasn't sure if he believed that statement, but he wanted to try to.

 _I'm gonna try and trust you. You're my partner, I have to try._

 _Yeah, you're my partner._


End file.
